John Casey vs Sarah Walker
by DementedOutcast
Summary: What happens when John Casey takes on Chuck's role when they go on a new assignment to stop a deadly new weapon? The closer Casey and Walker get as a fake couple the more unwanted feelings reach the surface.
1. Chapter 1 New Assignment

**okay, so this is the first time I'm actually writing something like this so please bear with me if you read this and I'll be really grateful if I get reviews for this. Normally I don't ask, but this is something I'm just working on so if you kindly review I'd love it. Oh, and with this story Casey and Walker are going to get together because for some unknown reason I really like them as a couple, but I really like Sarah and Chuck too. I just wanted to see how this pair would turn out. If I can somehow manage to work them out.  
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* * *

John Casey and Sarah Walker intently listened to the General speaking on the monitor about their new assignment about a man names Javier Vargas who is arms dealer that is traveling to Washington DC to make a trade for a new high technological weapon that can destroy a quarter of the earth, but at the moment they don't know who or where the man is that's selling the destructive weapon, and that they will be meeting at a Gala that was happening in one week. Both agents nodded their heads in understanding for their new assignment, but they also wondered what their new cover was going to be since the General let Chuck take a small leave absence for personal family matters and that he would be ready the next time they would set out on an assignment together.

"General," Walker slowly said crossing her arms over her chest, a steady look entering her eyes as Casey gave her a quick glance. "What is our cover?" She warily asked.

"You and agent Casey will be an undercover couple." The General steadily said, eyeing both her agents with a quizzical look. Casey gave her a distraught look which slightly took her off guard. "There isn't a problem is there, agent Casey?" He shook his head no muttering a curse, knowing Bartowski should be the one doing this. _He'd just screw it up_. He thought. "Good. Your flight leaves in six hours." They nodded their heads again for a response as the General went off the screen.

Walker and Casey stared at each other for several tense seconds before any of them moved to gather their weapons for their new assignment stationed in one of the top ten murderous states, but they know if they wanted to capture Javier Vargas they would have to sell their cover, so for now they just moved along with their new cover and got ready for Washington. Casey grabbed two duffel bags from the floor then opened a few slightly hidden doors as he filled the bags with several weapons. Walker was doing the same as the silence dawned on them. They wanted nothing more than to finish their mission they're going on, but there was something in the back of their minds telling them this was something worth their wild. They both slightly liked that feeling.

Walker took a pack from underneath the table filling it with some smaller weapons then went to the back room for a moment to get her set of knives and walked back into the main section of their little hideout with a small box in her hands as she placed them in her pack. She grabbed her coat from the back chair and slipped it on, slinging the pack on her shoulder while Casey attached a gun to his ankle and slipped a small blade in the side of his shoe then grabbed the bags, heading up the stairs. Walker wanted to finish this mission as clean as possible, but something else was bothering her knowing where it might lead Casey to if things get out of control. It's how he worked and the fact that he hasn't been a good mood. _When is he ever_? She thought. He didn't have this annoying human intersect asking him question on how to survive the field or how to get Sarah. John Casey just wanted to put a bullet in the man's head so he could be silences. He never did it. It was just to scare Chuck so he could get a good laugh at it later.

When they reached the top, the doors slip open as the agents stepped out in the yogurt shop feeling the cool air hit their warm bodies, almost wanting to take a few steps back inside their base to stay warm. They didn't, only continued to move ahead, walking out of the shop as Walker secured an alarm in case some random idiot from the Buy More broke in. She quickly turned around to see Morgan walking towards them with a big smile on his face waving hello to both of them as he asked Sarah about getting a free yogurt then turned to see she had closed up the shop and then getting a good look at the duffel bags Casey was carrying. He rolled his eyes in annoyance. He had to deal with him at the Buy More for a cover up while he helped Chuck find a way to remove the intersect from his head and he didn't want to deal with Morgan or much less any of the other idiots he has to be with. Casey preferred to stay away from each one of them.

He began to walk away, already getting annoyed by Morgan's presence and before he could do anything violent to the poor guy then get his ass handed to him by Walker. He dropped the bags on the ground, pressed the truck button on the key, placed the bags inside and took his place in the driver's seat, turning the car to life which caught Walker's attention. Whatever she told Morgan who kept persisting about a free yogurt, also wondering where they're going with all those bags. She told him she and Casey were quite busy, leaving him there confused if he was getting his free yogurt. Walker took her place in the passenger's side.

"Agent Walker and agent Casey," They turned their heads to the small screen placed in the middle of the SUV seeing the General take off her glasses for a moment. They noticed she does that when she's not exactly comfortable with certain people regarding the ones they take in. "This assignment is looking to be quite difficult, especially the Gala, but we already have the room ready for you. When you arrive someone will drop off a small box."

Casey set his eyes back on the road for a moment while the General spoke, Walker listening intently once more so they didn't have to face critical mistakes in the mission. They couldn't screw it up before they began. They wouldn't let it happen. Casey put his eyes back on the screen, driving down on an empty road, for the moment. "Congratulations, you two are now married, Mr. Cole and Mrs. Kate Carter for three years." She signed off the screen leaving her two best agents to deal with the new cover, except Casey would be her partner until they got rings.

When his eyes went back on the road, he quickly slammed his feet on the breaks as he almost rammed into the car from behind them. He sighed in relief, letting his hands relax on the steering wheel as they made their way to the airport.

"Well, this ought to be good." He dryly muttered under his breath, switching the turn signal on as he made his way into another lane and pressed down on the gas pedal.

Walker had a calm, questioning look on her face, intently staring out the glass windshield as if she was playing scenes in her mind that would to them while in Washington then replaced them with something else so those specific scenes wouldn't happen. Something else would happen.

They thought this was going to be a long assignment.

* * *

When they reached the airport, Casey was immediately taken in by some guards and into a private room getting questioned about his luggage and the other weapons they found. He groaned, lightly in annoyance wondering why this was happening to him of all times while Walker was waiting for him at the boarding area with her pack by her side. _Come on, Casey_. She thought. She was a bit worried about her partner, but she knew he was going to be fine. He can handle himself. Right now, Walker was tempted to go search for Casey, but something was holding her back so she just waited there for his sorry ass.

"Who are you?" One of the guards asked, slamming his hands on the table to see if he could get a reaction out of Casey. He rolled his eyes. He's faced worse people than a guy like him.

"I'm an NSA agent." Casey warily said rising to his feet, unlocking the cuffs he had on his wrists with a paper clip he hid in his watch. "I'm going now." He steadily declared, eyeing the two guards who took him in. "You can search if you like." He pushed the door open, rubbing at his slightly sore wrists.

A few twists and turns in the airport, Casey found Sarah waiting for him at the boarding area, her pack on her shoulder looking slightly worried. He smiled when he saw her look like that. "Miss me?" He whispered by her ear when he stood at her side.

"Immensely." She turned to see him for a second with a small smile on her gracious lips then handed the woman at the flight desk their tickets.

"When this is over you're going straight back to Chuck." Casey said in a low tone, cautiously walking down the small entrance. Walker smiled again letting him decide what that was for.

"Okay, Mr. Carter." Walker evenly said, taking Casey's hand in hers pulling him closer to her side, hearing a soft grunt escape him.

"For now, until we get the rings, you're taking Chuck's part." Walker firmly said.

"Right, sweetie." Casey said through clenched teeth, gripping her hand a bit tighter forcing a gentle smile on his face.

When they took their seats, Casey pulled out his phone making sure he had put a different server on it so he could contact the General if anything went wrong as well as getting more information on their arms dealer and the possible person behind the new high tech weapon. It's what had them both worried a bit because if they couldn't find that person they'll cause more chaos to themselves than the weapon itself or the General saying they would be suspension for quite awhile.

"How long is the flight?" Casey turned his head to Sarah, busy with her server then she locked eyes with his slightly shaken character.

"Don't like flying?" She raised a brow, showing she was interested in that story. He lightly grunted, wanting to look away from her eyes, but he couldn't. He froze every time he stared into them.

"Is it noticeable?" He calmly asked, only trusting Walker to keep this a secret. She gave him a taunting smile and told him the flight lasted about five hours. Casey leaned back in the seat, his head resting on the head rest, gripping both arm rests tightly, his knuckles turning pure white.

Sarah lightly chuckled at this new uncomfortable side of John Casey. She couldn't believe for as someone as brave as him was capable of feeling like this. She thought it was kind of cute. "Relax, John." Walker steadily said, slipping her hand around his.

He wondered what got her to say his first name. Casey took a glance at their intertwined hands for a moment, glad for the comfort and liking the feeling it put him through, surging through his body then he locked eyes with Walker once more feeling that trapping sensation, again, but he didn't mind. He liked every feeling he was getting with her and it didn't matter if she knew right now or someone was going to say something about it.

He just really liked the feeling.

Walker was wondering more and more about his little scare of flying, but she understood the problem, except the way they were staring at each other while she was giving him some comfort to calm down she couldn't help and feel there was something else keeping them or him for moving or doing anything in this situation. She was also wondering where all this was coming from or why she even wants to know, but she does want know why. She wouldn't stop and just let it continue.

"Shut up." Casey muttered under his breath, burning a hole into the back of the chair, lightly tightening his hold on Sarah's hand.


	2. Chapter 2 Problems

When there were a few hours into the flight, Casey's eyes were quickly scattering around the entire plane as they drifted from person to person, closed windows to open windows and to the little configurations above his head then to the calm sleeping Sarah Walker beside him whose warm hand was still on his. And this little stunt or act or whatever the hell Casey was making up in this little moment, all his worries and crazy nerves bouncing in his body was mostly gone when he saw her in that peaceful state. He was glad he had someone like Walker to fix him up when he really didn't give anyone a clue about his past or any part of his insecurities. He's kept everything to himself and it's how he worked for awhile until he got stuck protecting and helping the human intersect who is somewhere with his family. Wherever he was Casey was going to go after that kid for leaving him stuck with a beautiful partner.

Casey already knew he was going to be and act like Sarah's boyfriend for a few a more hours until they get the rings which he assumed was the box the General was talking about earlier, then they would be married . They were the Carters. The thought of selling their cover this way was killing him because if they kept treating each other like they needed some medical attention they were going to get themselves killed before they even started anywhere on the mission, but the actual feeling of being with Walker in this mission was going to be a slight wreck since she's the only who can seem to calm his nerves and the only person he knows because he usually works alone. He liked the feeling more and more, and maybe even a bit of her.

He watched her soft breathing pattern, her chest slowly rising and falling in synch, and the still strong hold on his hand and that serene look on her face. He shook his head side to side thinking to himself what the hell was he doing, wanting to shake himself free of that just now so he strained his eyes on the back seat of the chair in front of him once more burning another hole for a few seconds then slammed his eyes shut as he counted to ten in his head and intertwined their fingers again. He decided he was going to keep them shut once he knew the plane was safely back on the ground until a flight attendant softly asked him if he wanted a drink.

"Your strongest alcohol." Casey whispered, pulling down the small desk in front of him, not letting go of Walker's hand.

The flight attendant nodded her head, pulling out a small bottle of scotch and saw the blonde woman sleeping next to him. "You have a pretty girlfriend."

Casey gave her a slight nod. He just wanted the drink. "Can I just have the drink." He quickly said. The attendant didn't mind if he ignored the comment thinking he was a nervous, uncomfortable flyer or they weren't together.

She handed the scotch to him, a small smile landing on her face. Casey took a quick glance at Sarah knowing she was something else when the woman said he had a pretty woman. "If you don't mind me asking, how long have you two been together?" The attendant slowly asked. _Great_. He thought. Now he found another reason he hated flying on planes.

Nosy flight attendants.

"It's been three years." She nodded her head as Casey downed his drink feeling the intoxication burn this throat then the woman pushed the cart further down the aisle. Casey shut his eyes.

When he shut his eyes, he felt his problems wash away again, hoping not the be bothered by the same flight attendant so he just filled his mind of all the missions he's gone through the past few years with Chuck risking his life to get that damn intersect out of his head as well as Walker, but after being on those few assignments with Chuck in the few years made him think Chuck liked having the intersect in his head because he liked being around of there was something off about him that made him follow them on these insane missions.

Casey had also wondered where the hell Chuck was and why the General gave him a small leave of absence for saying he had private personal family matters, but he pushed that thought to the side settling in his seat, leaning his head back on the head rest easing his mind now of all thoughts and focused on his breathing. He wanted a bit more scotch, but he refrained from it because he couldn't get drunk while on an assignment. Walker would rip him a new one along with the General. When he wanted to focus on his breathing, he immediately remembered what he told the guards at the airport who took him that they can search him up if they like, except they would only be going on a photo. _This really is not my day_. He thought.

When Casey thought he was feeling a bit comfortable flying on a plane, the inner com came through as the pilot said they were going to be experiencing some turbulence in a few seconds and that they'll be feeling it most of the ride. Casey internally groaned, immediately opening his eyes, his body feeling all the sudden trembles running along the plane. He thought someone was playing some sick joke on him then he fiercely slammed his head against the head rest once more muttering that he hated riding on the damn thing.

He unbuckled his belt, slowly rising to his feet as he warily placed firm grips on the sides of the chairs as he carefully walked down the narrow aisle, trying to not freak himself out for what he was doing and the fact he was walking in violent shaking plane. Another flight attendant was calmly going to him, probably wondering why he up walking like he was terrified of something, something the attendant couldn't quite put her finger on.

"Excuse me, sir are you all right?" The woman kindly asked, taking in his slightly shaken character. He did not want to be stopped at, at the moment because when he did his nerves were bouncing faster and he didn't know what to do.

"Yeah," He slowly answered, looking ahead of her, barely making eye contact. "Just going to the bathroom." He walked past her, not bothering to look back and quickly stepped into the small room.

He placed his hands at the corner of the small sink staring at his on edge frame, his hands now tightly gripping the corners as they turn pure white. "Come on, get it together." He whispered to himself in a harsh demand. He rolled his eyes in annoyance. "What the hell are you doing?" He dryly muttered under his breath as he turned the knob on the sink, splashing some cool water on his face.

He needed to calm himself down and his nerves that are screwing with his mind, but there was something else, someone else and that was Sarah Walker who, whenever he thought about her, got a small relaxing smile from her or when she grabbed his hand he felt more at ease than before. He forced those thoughts to the back far corner of his mind, splashing another round of water on his face letting it linger for a bit longer then grabbed a few paper towels and dried his face. He walked out, going back to his seat.

He slowly walked past a few seats before he reached Walker where he then saw her awake and on her phone. She slipped it back in her pocket when she saw Casey hover over her for a second with a questioning look on his face wondering who was on the phone. Walker saw he wasn't shaking as much as before, though he hid those emotions away, most of the time so he could deal with them later on his own time. He quietly took his seat turning his head to Walker who was still staring at him.

"Casey, are you all right?" She warily asked in a low tone. He bore a steady look in her eyes.

"I'm fine." He growled through clenched teeth. Walker sighed, tiredly. She handed him a water bottle to help him now cool off.

"Drink this." He eyed her, carefully then the bottle then locked eyes with her once more. She raised a brow in confusion.

Another old couple from the side aisle was watching Walker and Casey as he downed a few sips. She gave the old couple a soft smile as they tore their gazes away from them. "Walker . . ." Casey slowly called her, confused, his vision becoming slightly blurry. "Sarah . . ." He forced out her name. She told him it would only last a few minutes and then his eyes shut.

The old couple took a wary glance as they saw Casey passed out then back to Walker who gave them another soft smile trying to tell them she's not some bad person. "He'll be okay." They nodded their heads, unsure of what to make of the situation.

* * *

When the plane made a slightly soft landing to Washington and they were clear for most of the turbulence, all the passengers were mostly off the plane, except for John Casey and Sarah Walker. She knew she poured a little too much of knock out drops into the bottle because Casey was still slightly passed out._ At least he's not freaking out_. She thought. She sighed, annoyed for doing this to him and how he hasn't really woken up, so she called out to one of the flight attendants to help her out with her drugged induced partner.

"What happened?" The Attendant slowly asked, slipping one of her arms around Casey's shoulder, pulling him a bit out of the seat.

"He had a little too much to drink." Walker wrapped one of her arms around his shoulder as they walk down the narrow pathway slightly swaying side to side.

One of the other attendants gave them an odd glance wondering why they were carrying a man who's not exactly moving in the right momentum then he went over to him asking if they needed help with the guy. Walker refused, saying they were just fine carrying him out of the plane on their own. He nodded for a response, leaving them alone to handle her troublesome partner who she put like this because he was freaking out and she couldn't have that, but Walker has done the same. They wouldn't let those weaknesses show through anymore or for at least the rest of the mission. They weren't going to take any chances.

"He's a nervous flyer." Walker added so the attendant didn't get any ideas as to why he's really knocked out.

"We get people like that sometimes." She softly said as they entered the boarding area where they both stopped out to the side of the entrance.

"I can take him from here, thank you." Walker let a smile fall on her face, hearing a small grunt from Casey. He was starting to get his movement back.

"All right." She clapped her hands, walking away from the two getting ready for the next flight.

"You drugged . . . me." Casey slowly said in disbelief, trying to regain his balance, but stumbled to the wall while Walker was the only person that kept him standing. "Once I get my balance back, Walker I am going to shoot you." He growled through clenched teeth. She smirked.

"I see your violent sense of humor is back." She proclaimed as she took him off the wall then lightly placed him in one of the back seats of the waiting area.

"Walker," Casey steadily said, gritting her name, clenching his hands to get the feeling back in them. She locked eyes with him as he glared daggers into hers. "Why the hell did you do that?"

"I don't need an insecure agent sabotaging the mission before it even starts." She carefully declared, staring into his hard glare. She was making him see a point and he knew exactly what it was. He needed to fix that.

"I am not insecure." Casey declared, avoiding her eyes for the moment, until she took his hand in hers, dragging his slightly unbalanced body across the airport.

"Keep telling yourself that." She dryly muttered a smirk across his face. For an unknown reason he liked that feeling, how she dragged him away, even when we was still feeling a bit of the affects of his drugged induced body.

"I'm starting to think you actually like holding my hand." He smirk grew a little wider when she stopped in the middle of the airport. He almost rammed into her when she did stop, slightly losing some of his balance.

"I think I slipped you too much." She blankly added with her face inches away from his. She wanted to whip out her gun and shoot that ridiculous smirk off his face.

"It's cute." Casey finished, softly while Walker thought why the hell he was acting this way, but it disappeared when he said something cute about her, having their faces closer and she was about to close in even more. She didn't. "Come on, we need out bags." He regained most of his balance as he led the way to "Baggage Claim." Walker stood behind him, confused as what to make of him, their cover, and his mixed signals.

Sarah Walker thought she was going insane.

* * *

"CASEY!" Walker incredulously shouted as she had a hard cover book in her hand for defense while Casey aimed his gun at her. "YOU ARE OVER REACTING!" She swiftly rolled over to the other side of the bed, the comforters swirling around, and the book in her hand.

"YOU DRUGGED ME!" He proclaimed in disbelief, cautiously walking over to the other side of the bed where he stood across from her. She didn't think he was actually serious about wanting to shoot her.

"YOU WERE INSECURE!" She bitingly spat back, taking a wary step to the side as he did the same, his finger resting by the trigger.

He took one more cautious step to the side, cornering her at the wall, slowly walking in her direction with a hard glare in his eyes. She matched his eyes, a scoff escaping his mouth. She couldn't believe a few hours ago this man was being oddly nice to her saying she was cute when she grabbed his hand every time something was off about him or something went wrong or the fact that she now has a completely insane partner who is supposed to be taking on Chuck's role and is now wanting to shoot her when she was trying to keep him calm when he wasn't able to do it himself. Except counting to ten and shutting his eyes closed so he didn't have to focus on anything else wasn't helping him until Walker intertwined their hands together. When Casey is done with his dramatics, Walker was going to get back at him, not thinking about how childish they're reacting.

If he was playing some sick twisted game with her that kept her guessing about his next move, Walker was going to make sure she was on the other end of the gun with that hard glare while he would be the one hiding in the corner with only a thick book in his hand as his only defense to stop a bullet. Though they may have their own ways to settle, Casey was crossing the line just a bit and he knew so did Walker. To him, it wasn't treason, it was getting payback for what she did to him, but if it was the General he'd make sure to thank her instead of putting himself in these types of situations where he potentially get his ass kicked out of the agency or by Sarah Walker, his partner in many scenarios.

When Casey took another step forward, Walker did the same, quickly smacking the thick book to the side of his head as he dropped the gun in between them. He clutched the side of his head and fiercely glared into her eyes, again. He didn't care. Though he loved using guns he wouldn't use them on her if she did the same, probably will. If the book was the only item that could get the gun away, he wasn't surprised and then he rushed forward, towards her as she swiftly side stepped him and slammed the back of her foot into his leg. He lightly grunted in pain, promptly spinning around on his knee as he brought her down on the floor, his eyes roaming around her curvaceous body and the violent look she has in her eyes.

He hovered over her body that was slightly twisting around the both of them, gripping both her wrists tightly planting them above her head as he leaned his head down further into her feeling her warm breath against his cheek and stared into her furious brown eyes. Casey knew she could break out from his iron grasp, but when she didn't it meant a lot to him because it showed him she trusted him, deeply and that she still trusted him even if he did have a gun aimed at her head. He also knew he was crossing the line since he was trying to scare her from her earlier act on the plane, only a little, but she didn't seem to mind. He was okay with that, for the moment, until something on their mission screws it all up and be in the same situation, again, maybe even have their positions reversed.

"Now, we're even." He whispered by her ear, slowly releasing his hands from her lightly redden wrists then helped her to her feet.

"I'm gonna' kill you." Walker dryly muttered. Casey scoffed. The idea of her trying to kill him made him feel a bit better when she didn't drug him this time. He thought it to be a challenge and he would gladly take it.

_**Knock**_.

They turned their heads to the door, still staring at each other with cautious looks displayed on their faces then Casey went over to the door, warily opening it seeing a man hand him a small black box with a not attached to it. He shut the door with the side of his foot, unraveling the note which said:

_Agent Casey and Agent Walker, _

_Do not lose these rings, if you do the two of you will not receive your paychecks for the next few weeks. _

_Don't die. _

He chuckled when he read the note, knowing exactly who wrote it and the name at the bottom of the note in fancy cursive and tossed it aside calling Walker to him where he opened the small case seeing two silver bands with a strip of gold running down the middle. He thought they were plain, but plain is what they needed because they come off saying they were billionaires, but he did wondered how much these plain rings cost.

"Are those the rings?" Walker slowly asked as he held up one of the rings, a small smile falling into place.

"Now, you're officially my wife," _For the time being_. He thought. Casey carefully slipped the ring on her finger, his hands unconsciously running along her smooth skin feeling something spark in her chest. "Mrs. Kate Carter."

* * *

**Okay, so I'm looking for a beta reader to edit any of my stories I've posted here on FF and the other reason I'm asking is that I have no idea how to do that because this is sort of the first time I'm using this website so if someone could kindly do that I'd really appreciate it. It would mean a lot. **


	3. Chapter 3 Premier

**All right, here's the 3rd chapter and I've had this one written for awhile now. That doesn't matter. Here in this one, Casey and Walker fire up the dance floor as the feelings rise higher with a bit of deadly flirting. Seriously, this dance was not easy to write. And you probably don't want to read this rambling A/N so I'll just give you the chapter. **

* * *

Casey and Walker's stare lingered on each other for awhile longer when he said that line while still holding onto her soft hand, lightly moving the ring back and forth on her finger, both of them letting ghosts of a smile on their faces. Somewhere along the years Casey has worked with Sarah, he's grown to like their partnership, but when the General told them they would be a married couple he didn't know if he could actually be a spy for this mission because he knew now he had something for Sarah Walker. He couldn't put them at risk so for now he pushed those feelings away from his mind, away from his entire body because he couldn't do that to her or to anyone else at the matter. He was going to make sure of that. He wouldn't let those resurface from underneath him and he was going to keep it that way, until he couldn't handle it anymore.

Walker knew what that soft gleam is in his eyes because she has the same look in her eyes, and held his hand, wanting to close the space between them so they didn't have to face this, whatever they're facing or to jeopardize what they already are. Walker was doing the same: not letting her emotions reach the surface, plus she's an agent, trained to not have any emotions and the same went with Casey, but it wasn't helping that they are agents. They're already there. They were close to breaking those very rules they were told long before they even reached the field. Now, they're there facing those very rules once again, like they were a pair of rookie agents who are going on their first assignment. Each time they went on a mission, they were always faced with that one rule.

Casey's mind was like a loaded gun where he could hear all the screams in his head telling him to do something with this gap between them, but he didn't do anything and he thought it was probably safer that way. He is an agent and he wasn't going to screw up this mission, but there was something crawling at the surface longing to get out. Sarah Walker was like a mystery he couldn't solve, now he was going to find a way to break it so can get some things on her because he wanted a little more of what she is now. If he couldn't find he thought it might be okay for awhile, except with the way his body is screaming for her is not helping him. But he also wanted to know a bit more about her past, wanted to grasp it or at least wait until something out of the shadows leaps down on them. It'll be the day he'll be chasing her down even further, more than he thought he ever would.

The look he had earlier in his eyes disappeared as she wanted to break the spaces between them every time. She didn't know how she was able to last with this or how long Casey would last since he seems to be the one to pursue it first. She didn't seem to mind, let alone mind half of the things they do. She was slightly enjoying it, but she would never admit to herself or Casey. What she doesn't understand about her partner is that he gives her the right signals in the most ridiculous times while she was watching out for his next move since he doesn't seem to notice how distraught he leaves her. He was teasing her and she might just believe it.

"It looks like you two are getting quite use to your cover." The General steadily said, carefully eyeing her agents as they quickly pulled their hands away from each other.

"General." Walker and Casey exclaimed in disbelief, turning their heads towards the screen, either putting their hands in their pockets or crossed over their chest. "Is there anything we can do?" Walker calmly asked.

"There is going to be a premier tonight at the gala. We've made reservations for you two tonight so you'll be meeting Javier Vargas." The General answered as Casey and Walker shared a quick glance hoping they would be okay for tonight. "Be sure to wear your finest suits." She gave her agents a ghost of a smirk before she signed off the screen.

"How much time do we have?" Casey checked his watch while Walker went over to the bed where she grabbed her pack slipping a few items on the bed and a slick bag.

"Three hours." He did the same, checking each magazine of his guns making sure they had enough bullets. "Don't take so long."

"I'll be an hour." She proclaimed, taking her things with her as she entered the lavishing bathroom.

Casey grabbed another bag from the ground, taking out a case and flipped it open to his new luxurious suit he would be wearing for the gala. He was enjoying the mission more and more before it had even really begun. He loved the rushing adrenaline flowing throughout his entire body every time he got a mission which made him that much eager to catch the bastards behind all of this.

* * *

Casey stood in front of a mirror as he wrapped a tie around his neck and stopped for a moment when he saw Walker leaning on the side of the door frame with her arms crossed over her chest, a gracious smile across his soft lips. His edges rose up as well when he saw her wearing a crimson red dress that toned her body, bringing out every bit of emotion she hides so well underneath all her steel masks and maybe show some real emotions since they're playing a cover. He told himself this is a mission and he wasn't going to screw it up. Neither was she.

"You clean yourself up real well, Sarah." Casey cheekily said. She rolled her eyes. She was going to take the compliment either way, no matter who cheesy he sounded. It was kind of nice coming from him.

"You don't look so bad yourself." He smirked. Her smile grew wider. "I have everything ready so you don't need to worry." He scoffed. He knew he had an over responsible partner who kept things mostly in line for each other. Occasionally, he thought that was a good thing.

He stopped fixing his tie for a second, grabbing a rectangular case from the counter then stepped in front of Sarah. "I figured you may want this." He held up a slightly long silver necklace, a deluxe circle, almost coming off the end, the tip of the tail would be running down her neck.

She uncrossed her arms as he slipped the necklace around her neck. He was about to walk away when he felt her jerk him back to her, fixing his tie. He was a bit too busy letting his eyes wander around her strong frame, and sometimes Casey thought if they weren't agents that he, Walker and Chuck had met under different circumstances, he'd think Walker would still be his partner, except they wouldn't be risking their lives for a human intersect.

"Thank you." She pulled the end of his tie through a loop, her smile still plastered to her face. She could only enjoy for it so long.

He lightly shrugged his shoulders, watching her fix him up. "I can work my own tie." He rested his hands on hers. She rolled her eyes.

She shoved them away. "Then stop staring at me every time we come around each other." She warily said, pushing up the tie slightly close to his neck.

He blinked once knowing he just got caught, but he had a feeling she knew from the beginning. He shut the door, walking back into the bedroom, quickly seeing Walker search the room to see if she missed anything. She didn't. So Casey stopped her before she actually did forget something, extending his arm to hers with a pleasurable smile growing across his face. He was falling a little more, every time now. _Oh, great_. He thought.

"Shall we, Mrs. Carter." Walker hooked her arm around his as they stepped out of the hotel room, her edges rising up.

Sometimes Casey wondered how he even got a partner like her, though they were the best of any other agents in the agency.

When they reached the brightly lit main lobby, the clerk at the main desk told them to have a good time as they waved him off and headed outside where a man came around with their luxurious car, with both their faces a little shocked from what the government is providing them with this, but it was mostly Walker while Casey secretly kept it away from her. He gave her a knowing look, a sly smirk growing across his face as she stared into his eyes wondering why they have a car like this and why he didn't exactly tell her, no matter what kind of position they're in.

He really did love teasing her.

She was more intrigued by the black Mercedes Benz.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She slowly asked, staring into his eyes once more as he opened her door, but she wouldn't forget his little move earlier. She was still going to kill him.

"I know you have thing for fast cars." Casey dryly answered shoving the key in the ignition bringing the car to life. She raised a brow.

"And how do you know that?" Walker warily asked, slightly making eye contact through the head mirror. He lightly grunted knowing that question was bound to bite him back in the ass.

"Had to look up your file when we were first partnered because I didn't need some moronic person gunning me down." He whispered under his breath. She rolled her eyes. He had a what look on his face, wondering what the hell her problem was. He thought she'd do the same thing, but she didn't.

"Well, now I have an unstable partner." She dryly muttered training her gaze on the road. Casey pressed on the gas pedal making the car go faster so he didn't have to hear Walker complain about how he was either insecure or unstable for the entire ride.

* * *

Casey swiftly pulled the car at the entrance, immediately stepping out and tossing the key to one of the clerks by the end of the small steps as Walker fashionably stepped out of the car slipping her arm around Casey's and made their way up the small steps. Casey had muttered something about the clerk if he got scratch on it he'd put a bullet in him. Walker lightly scoffed knowing that the clerk didn't know what was coming to him. To Casey, he was some guy who ruined a beautiful car, and he didn't even own it which made it a little more fun for Casey.

Some bright flashes from the cameras that were popping out from every angle were blinding their vision. The only reason for that was because Javier Vargas was going to here tonight and that they're in a fancy gala where everything would come down to just their cover, maybe, or be trapped in a war of raging gun fire while trying to take out their targets which highly turns out to be most of their missions if they don't turn to shit. To be doing all of this in one day was a royal pain in the ass for both agents because in this moment all they wanted to do was either soak themselves in a hot shower and deal with this tomorrow or deal with the fact there's some sort of thing going on between them. Instead they would prefer dealing with the gala, only to find Vargas and the one who is buying the weapon.

They still don't have an ID on that man. It was bothering them, but if they spotted Vargas early somewhere in the gala talking to someone who might be _that_ person. They were going to take their chances. Though they may not have much to go on it was better to test their right then and there than to find out it was someone who worked with him.

They stalked over to the bar to avoid any people who would want to engage in a conversation with them. They were only there for one man and that man hasn't shown up. Walker took a seat as Casey leaned his side on the counter looking at the people behind her hoping to see Vargas appear from the shadows. It didn't matter right now. So when there was a waiter serving champagne to all the guests, almost passing them, Casey grabbed two glasses and handed one to Sarah, toasting their drinks.

"Normally we'd go search the place." Casey slowly started to say taking a swig of his drink. Walker nodded her head yes. "I'm still a bit jet lagged." She smirked.

"At least you won't be knocked out this time. Walker steadily said in a devious tone, downing some of her drink to hide her smirk. He caught it and thought how she loves to tease him.

Well, he is the same way.

"Why do you think I like driving so much?" He calmly said asked in a low tone. She narrowed her eyes.

There was a deathly silence sitting over them as they heard the loud pounding music sifting throughout the gala, still seeing some of the flashes from cameras and people's voices surrounding the building while Walker and Casey just listen to the silence, trying to block out most of the sound so they can focus on the assignment, a little of the looks they give each other. They knew those looks meant a bit more and they mostly shut them off when things get too close between them. It was how they worked. They just wanted a taste, to give them something as tempting.

"Would you like to dance?" The unfamiliar Polish accent he heard from Sarah took him a bit off guard and he tensed ever so slightly.

He furrowed his brows in confusion wanting to diffuse the actual meaning behind that question until he stared back into her eyes again as she tilted her head to the side and a brown curl fell across her beautiful face as she watched his confused expression with a slight smirk pulling at the edges of her lips. Casey's body entirely froze, unsure of what to really make of the situation. He wondered if this was her twisted way at getting back at him and to play with his emotions, but when she licked her lips his mind was going on overdrive.

He was definitely thinking she was teasing him. He couldn't exactly focus at the moment.

Casey froze again as he started to feel his entire body unconsciously respond, his blood rushing way too fast knowing no one has ever made him react this fast. He felt his blood start to pulsate quicker through his veins and quickly dropped a steel mask to hide his embarrassing expression he had a few seconds ago. He heard her lightly laugh, except it was like someone poured a cold bucket of ice water because it wasn't her laugh he heard. It was the cold side of Sarah Walker who always had her emotions shoved in the far corner of her mind with no way out. It's the other Sarah Walker he knows about. He just never really wanted to see, until now.

"Please tell me you're using a voice alternating device?" He begged, quickly getting a hold of himself pushing his unknown feelings to the back of his head. _This is a damn mission_. He reminded himself.

This wasn't real. He didn't want this. A mysterious smile spread across her lips and it was doing some weird shit to his stomach. It wasn't the pleasant feeling either. Something about these lure and kill missions echoed something from her mind and it caused her to react a bit differently. He preferred the hard headed and efficient Sarah Walker he usually worked with in this direct line of fire. This enigmatic Walker made him wary.

"Maybe." She answered, airily in the same Polish accent which was quite odd coming out of her mouth.

He was feeling a bit light headed and it wasn't because of the scary cold side of her, but it was the alluring personality part which he knew wasn't real and that's what made his non-hormone driven side of his brain cautious because he was beginning to think nothing was ever real between them, but that wasn't the case. She only put this on for a show because they were going to meet Vargas soon. So he knew he would have to put with this. Sometimes he thought he had a scary partner and other times he knows he does.

"I think I liked your normal voice better-barely hinted Polish accent and all." He muttered, determinedly looking away from her eyes for a second searching the crowd once more. No one.

He sighed, tiredly under his breath thinking this is their job: acting to get their guy. It was also their over, so he grabbed her hand dragging both their slight fatigue bodies into the crowd. He was going to end up dancing with her whether he said yes or no. Walker lightly chuckled, letting him actually drag her to the floor. "You know, I didn't think you'd actually dance." Walker calmly said losing all traces of her Polish accent. Casey suddenly tripped hearing her sudden normal voice.

He turned her around shooting her a burning look as he pulled her along. "Well, you can be a pain in the ass that has the strangest taste in the world." She sighed, breathily as Casey shook his head in disbelief.

"And why is that strange?" She asked as Casey stopped right in front of the dance floor. It was a rare moment he was caught off guard, but it didn't last long.

"Walker, can you even dance?" He suddenly asked changing the subject. She gave him a long look knowing that was pathetic, especially coming from him.

"We're agents, not civil war fighters, Casey." Walker dryly said. He spun her around him again with a fresh determined look on his face as he stepped backwards onto the dance floor while he pulled her along, suddenly joined by hands and almost tripped once again from the speed he was bringing her at.

"You can be rather demanding." He said, amused easily regaining his balance.

She rolled her eyes wrapping their hands together. She knew she was slightly demanding, half the time, but she didn't need to hear that from her partner. Casey paused for a moment as he considered what that gesture really meant.

"So you've disguised yourself as a man before too. Why am I not surprised?" He said shaking his head in more amusement. She gave him another dry look and placed his other hand around her waist. They stared at each for several tense seconds waiting for the playing song to end.

"Ready to get blown away, _Cole_?" She whispered inches away from his face as he tightened his grip on her waist from the sudden use of his cover name.

"I've danced with the best." He suddenly said with a straight face. Walker slightly grimaced.

"I have an odd partner." Walker honestly said seeing the confusion displayed on his face, but she gripped his hand as the new song started. He lightly grunted when he knew what was playing in the background._ Tango, fantastic and now she's calling me odd_. He thought.

"Maybe I like being odd." He whispered before he pulled her into the dance and spun them across the dance floor.

She was lightly tense as he led them through several intricate back and forth foot work around the gala. She kept up with him easily and didn't look away from his serious gaze for even a second. To her, dancing was like a second nature. She could feel the control in his frame as he quickly twirled her in place and he firmly caught her by her waist before he spun her back around into his arms with perfect timing. She narrowed her eyes when she still saw that serious expression in his eyes. Her partner was starting to creep her out.

"Are you all right?" Walker steadily asked as he led them through another round of footwork that was more like a battle of how he could keep his pace and how fast she can follow his elaborate footsteps, except they weren't trying to shoot each other this time. They weren't going to break their rhythm.

"What, I always look like this." He said, defensively as he slid his warm hand up her side and coaxed her into a deep dip away from him. He followed his motion with a swift step forwards to balance their sudden shift.

Several strands of hair came loose from her pinned up bun and he thought it made her look sexy. She stared at him with cautious eyes. "Sometimes I worry about you." Walker said before he gracefully pulled her back upright and she firmly gripped his shoulder as she kicked her foot back and slammed her heel onto the hardwood floor as he forced her backwards as the music picked up.

"Sorry, sweet heart, but I'm just fine." Casey decisively said as he firmly grabbed her waist allowing her to throw her right leg in the air and slide it across the floor in a wide semi-circle as he followed her hypnotic motions with his eyes.

"But I will." She quietly said as he tugged her back towards him and slammed her body against his slightly harder than necessary. The music spiked up and she wrapped one of her long strong legs around his waist and allowed him to lift her off the ground and spin them across the dance floor as her red dress flowed around them like a swirling fire. They never lost eyes contact as he carried her through the dance.

He lightly smirked. "Do what you please." He said as he gracefully came to a stop and allowed her to spin right out of his arms until they were only joined together by one hand. "We're agents, not soldiers." He said without looking at her. They were still monitoring the entrance for their targets. They never forgot why they were there. They were never allowed to forget. He sighed and tugged her back towards him and firmly grasped her hand as she fell against his chest with a careful look in her eyes.

"Why are you being so pessimistic?" She muttered as he tightly gripped her waist to lift her up and spin her around before he bent his knee and forced her to slide into nearly full split across the wood floor. He leaned forward while she searched his eyes for an answer.

"Because life burns optimists alive, _Kate_." Casey replied staring back at her with a dark undertone to her words. She gave him a sympathetic smile before he wrapped a strong arm around her body and slowly pulled her back up into a standing position. Then he suddenly flipped her around, roughly dragged her bare back flush against his chest. She felt him inhale, sharply and chuckled sending deep vibrations through her body.

She definitely knows she has an insane partner.

"My world is already on fire, Sarah." Casey whispered in her ear as he slowly guided both of her arms to wrap around his neck as they both watched the entrance wondering when their dance would be forced to end. He wrapped one of his arms around her waist once more and he slid the other down her stomach, over her thigh and grasped her right knee forcing her to pull it up to her chest.

She decided she was going to play his sick, twisted, little game.

"Why hasn't it burned down to the ground yet?" Walker steadily asked as they both took a deep breath.

"Because the fire is what keeps me alive." Casey answered as he picked her up and rapidly spun them around again and again and again. For a moment it was just them lost in the music that dedicated their every motion.

"Then one day that fire will go out." She said slightly breathlessly as he finally brought them to a standstill and let her drop to the floor in front of him. He dragged his nose over her shoulder and pressed his face into the dip of her neck as he took a deep breath of just walker.

"I'll never let our fire go, Sarah." Casey whispered passionately. She tensed and suddenly broke his hold and pulled away from him to spin around and pin him with a fierce look.

Walker was really hating all these mixed signals he kept giving her and the fact that Casey kept switching characters.

"Why are you doing this now, Casey?" Walker asked, cautiously. The song finally ended and they were both left out of breath and staring at each other with several unspoken questions suddenly hanging in the air.

He didn't understand what she was saying. She herself looked confused now. What the hell? "Walker, you're stupid sometimes." He dryly proclaimed with a sigh. She froze and completely blanked out on him. He reached out to pull her closer and felt her instantly tense as he glanced over his shoulder – it wasn't because of him. There was slightly built dark-haired late arrival wearing a white lavishing suit that completely contrasted with the color of Walker's dress.

"Our target is here." Casey said, quietly popping the bubble they had been stuck in together. He sighed and leaned his forehead against her shoulder. Damn mission.

"Let's shut up and go befriend our target, Casey." Walker said, flawlessly slipping into mission mode. He shook his head and firmly gripped her waist, not allowing her to pull away just yet. The dark-haired target could wait because now Casey was somewhat sure how he felt. Instead he drew her closer and leaned his cheek against hers so that his lips were right up against her ear. He continued to gently spin them around the dance floor while keeping an eye on their built dark haired weapons dealer. They ignored the music now and just flowed with their own beat.

"You know, I'd prefer to dance with you, but at first two people hated the fact they wanted each other. Those people denied it and it was okay for awhile because they didn't know each other at the time. A few years passed as those people learned a few things about each other-real things then suddenly one day they maybe thought they could be friends and they were lucky enough to find out too. She's an amazing friend, saved my ass more times than I can count then one day being friends wasn't enough." Casey whispered, softly as she tried to pull away, but he wouldn't let her go and just held on tighter.

"Stop, Casey." Walker said, quietly. He smiled softly, but didn't listen – he never listened to her words – only her actions. And she wasn't pushing him away – physically or otherwise. He liked that. So was she, but she couldn't do anything here with him.

"It doesn't matter what she wants." She whispered. He shook his head sadly.

"It matters to me." He whispered back. She remained silent. He easily filled the silence.

"Did you like my little story?" He asked with a tight smile. She scoffed.

"It got way too damn cheesy at the end. The story should have stopped when she saved your ass." She muttered. He laughed softly.

"But then where would the happy ending com from then?" He asked, amused. She suddenly looked away and frowned. There were no things such as happy endings.

"Life doesn't work that way, Casey." She said, carefully. His expression darkened slightly.

"No – actually it's the agency that doesn't work like that, but we could work around that." He whispered. She tensed and he smiled softly. "Things like that make _those_ people want each other more, you know." He whispered again. She sighed and shut her eyes.

"No, Casey. I don't think this is a good idea." Walker quietly said. He was silent for several tense moments.

"I've had job offers from the CIA, you know?" Casey said, suddenly while still keeping an eye out on the lone figure floating through the room. They were still waiting on that one person who bought the weapon or someone who looked like they have enough money to throw around. Until he showed up he technically didn't have to let her go.

She raised a brow. "The people you call idiots and insult all the time? The place _I_ work?" She warily asked. He laughed.

He simply nodded his head yes with a light grunt. She rolled her eyes at his childish response. "You're more suited for the NSA than working at my agency." She said with a scoff. He shrugged his shoulders.

"It would be worth it, trust me." Casey said seriously, but they both know he would hate it. Their agency was the only organization out there that gave them the right amount of freedom along with proper regulations, but he would still do it if it he had to. If they got caught and service terminated he had somewhere to go – that was the point.

"Do they even allow for novices to choose their partners in the CIA?" Casey slow asked in a wary tone. She froze. Was he saying what she thought he was saying?

"Are you serious?" Walker asked in shock. She gave him a long look. Well, it wasn't like she was jumping to switch organizations. She rather liked their current handler – it kind of helped out she saved their lives. "You still gotta' work for it, Casey." She said, dryly. He rolled his eyes.

"Haven't you already put me through enough shit? You and your annoying mood swings, odd habits and evil pranks. Damn, if only the world knew just how sadistic you can be." He muttered under his breath. She scowled and was about to smack him upside the head when they both tensed as they saw someone finally appear: Javier Vargas and a few people following him.

Damn, time was up. They were always running on pre-set time limits.

"Come on. Let's get our targets." Casey whispered as he brushed his lips against her cheek and walked towards them while taking his warmth with her. She stood there for several moments breathing in deep breaths and trying to compartmentalize the mess of her emotions he always leaves behind in her before she schooled her face and both walk together towards their targets. Great, now her cheek would be burning for the rest of the night. Bastard did it on purpose she was sure.

* * *

**I hope you guys like this one. It's a little longer than the last two and I'm thanking the people who have given this FF some reviews, so thank you. **

**So now things are going to get a little messy! But how _exactly_ is the question. ACTION TIME! I sort of have a plan for that scene. And um . . . TANGO IS FREAKING HARD TO WRITE, DAMN IT. It was the first time I did something like that I hope it turned out okay, but I sort of did add in a little other moves which may be physically possible, probably not, but this FF so anything can happen. Ha. **

**DID YOU LIKE THIS DANCE? **

**Am I updating this too fast? Just let me know because I don't want to go overboard with this . . . **

**Hope this was okay and thanks again for the reviews. **


	4. Chapter 4 Choices

**A/N: I want to apologize for all the mistakes that have been going on in the last few chapters. I really am. And I'm also thanking the people who are still reading this even though there are several mistakes. Again sorry!**

**Now we're going to have some fun! **

**Hahahaha.**

* * *

When Casey and Walker stepped out from the dance floor, they calmly walked over to Javier Vargas and where they saw a few people by his side with calculative expressions displayed on their faces as they search the gala for any type of misconduct. Casey appeared to be the epitome of calm as they walked towards Vargas, but all he really wanted to do was ditch the gala, the entire mission and drag his partner out of here and honestly do anything else, but stay here. _Anything_. He didn't even care if she wanted to do anything mental with him, maybe something physical. They could just go and have a damn pizza like most people and he would be happy.

Then he suddenly tensed-but he needed to finish the mission first. Walker felt the sudden change in his character. She turned her head to gaze at his new sudden smile plastered to his face. Casey's a man of action – he needed to be kept busy. He needed the agency to keep himself at bay, but he needed her to give him a reason to keep all these smiles he shows her. He knew it had been the same for her. So that's just another reason why he kind of wanted to abandon the mission. He just wanted to rest with her.

He took a deep breath and steeled his resolve as Walker whipped her head back to the front. They were going to get this damn mission done and then he could do whatever the hell he wanted with Sarah before an extraction team comes to take in Javier Vargas and whoever the hell made and bought the damn weapon. He told himself he wouldn't let his emotions interfere with their job, but every time he was with her something always kept spiking at him. Maybe even a little for Sarah. In this moment, he had temporarily pushed them away, again. He really needed to stop doing that.

"Hello." They coolly said as they stepped in front of the muscled man. They watched him slightly tense as he realized who he was faced with then gave them an appreciative smile. They wondered what made him tick, thinking if it was a pure surprise that he had people waiting for him or he just simply forgot, but what person like him would forget something as important as this?

Vargas watched the rather attractive blonde woman in front of him with a fierce gleam in her eyes – they were dark and dangerous, but not like most of the times he's seen her with this look and most of the time they were alive if you carefully watched them long enough. Walker had been one of the most changing women he's ever met, however her actions in the field proved otherwise. When Casey caught Vargas staring at her with lustful eyes, he wanted to shoot the guy in the head and leave – execution style. Instead he lightly grunted and rolled his eyes wondering if this guy has something better to do than chasing down his partner who is clearly not interested in him.

"She's not interested, Vargas." Casey curtly said. He didn't show his shock so he just smiled, wider. He wrapped a firm grip around her waist pulling her closer to his side.

"Don't worry about it." Walker calmly said grabbing his had that was encircled her waist and let him get a good look at the rings. "Anyone good enough to know can figure out he wants me all to himself." A devious grin landed on Walker's lips. Vargas nodded his head once and clapped his hands. Now he knows who they are.

That was pathetic.

"Ah, so you two must be the Carters." He proclaimed sticking out his hand which Casey took. "Mr. Cole?" He said a bit confused. Casey nodded his head yes. "What can I do for you two?" He steadily asked. Now this was more like it: just down to business.

"This should be discussed in a more private area, don't ya' think?" Casey warily said in a low tone as they took a step forward.

"If it's about _that_, Mr. Carter I'm sorry, but that has already been bought." Vargas said with a sad look in his eyes. Now, how was that possible since the man who created that weapon gave it to him-they didn't know how he actually got it. _Great_. They took another daring step forward.

"Who bought it?" Walker cautiously asked giving him a graceful smile. He cleared his throat. Casey rolled his eyes. _This is pathetic_. He thought.

"Riviera," Vargas pointed to the woman in a long slick black dress sitting at the bar drinking a glass of champagne. "Bought it for about eight hundred thousand . . ." He whispered loud enough for them to hear. It was only for their ears _only_.

"What if we could pay you more?" Casey gave Walker an incredulous look and whispered he was against that kind of involvement. "A million." She offered. Casey lightly nudged her side. She narrowed her eyes at him.

Vargas gave them a skeptical look as Casey nodded his head for reassurance. He had to play the part. "I'll let you know." He steadily said, carefully eyeing them.

"Can you tell us anything about Riviera?" Casey suddenly asked before Vargas changed the subject. He was going to try and stay on this topic for awhile until he got what he needed. "And maybe who built it?"

"Riviera, she's a quiet person. Likes to keep to herself, but can be quite fierce when needed. In other words she's a quite strong woman with a strong character." Vargas quietly said taking a quick glance at her from his standing position. "I don't know who built it. However she may know." He pointed at her figure once more. We can have a meeting to discuss with her tomorrow if you'd like." He suggested as Casey nodded his head no.

"That won't be necessary." He stole a quick at Riviera knowing they need whatever information she has. "Kate, sweetheart, do me a favor and take a dance with this tall built man." Casey slightly growled forcing a small smile on his face. Walker lightly chuckled. "I'm gonna' go see if we can get her off the buy." He whispered in her ear, immediately feeling her tense, but it was quickly replaced by a steeled mask.

"Of course." Walker slowly said before she went over to Vargas's side with Casey planting another burning kiss on her cheek. Damn it. He was doing it, again.

"How long have you two been married?" Vargas slowly asked as Casey walked away and took her hand leading to them to the dance floor.

She blinked once to him out of her head and focus on the mission. "Uh, three years." She answered as he twirled her around in place with a smile plastered to his face as she was slowly brought back to him. This dance was much calmer than the one she had with Casey.

Meanwhile, Casey finally reached the woman, also his target. "Hey beautiful – wanna' dance?" He asked, calmly from behind her. He watched her take a swig of her drink as she slightly tensed when she realized he was talking to her. He heard her scoff. What the hell was he doing?

Just because some moves worked like this on Walker did not mean it would work on Riviera – he included. If only he didn't want _her_ so much. He just had a taste of the other Sarah Walker, but fake wasn't going to cut it. Reality was too addicting. He honestly thought he had a theory about her that she probably even tasted different when she was acting. He never wanted to find out what kissing Walker was like while she was acting. He preferred the real Sarah Walker.

He waited for an answer seeing her gracefully spin around with her drink in her hand and locked eyes with him. Her brown eyes were cold as ice, but not deadly like other agents who worked in their line of fire. Some of them were practically dead if you ever got a good look. However, the eyes in front of him were very, very _young_ and quite alive. It made him second think he was going to have to take her in. "Not interested, lightweight." She said, curtly. He narrowed his eyes. There is seriously something wrong with this picture.

He had a few sips of champagne, but when Walker had asked him to dance with that Polish accent he left it behind and so she probably thought he was the only man in the room that hasn't even taken a single sip of alcohol. He reeked of alcohol-free. "I can drink your ass under the table, lady." He muttered under his breath, annoyed about the fact that she called him _lightweight_. He wasn't. He inhaled a small deep breath to calm his nerves and said, "Not even giving this poor man a shot?" He downheartedly asked continuing the charade as he tried to figure out this woman and what she knows about the weapon.

Her eyes flashed as his words seemed to ring a cord in her – she had a past. They all had pasts but hers must have been more recent. "No one is poor here." She spat and he was slightly taken aback by the bite in her tone. He didn't let the shock show either. He was being reminded of a certain blonde woman when he stepped in front of Riviera. He saw her glance over at their at their target through the crowed dance floor and Casey saw not too far back there was a beautiful blonde with their pursuing target at the moment. He kind of wished she was pursuing him, but at the same time he knew she was in mission mode. He never wants to be treated like a target, especially from her.

_She'll break soon when people start staring. She doesn't want to attract attention. _He thought. "Come on little firecracker. Give me just one dance then you'll never see me again. I won't leave until you say yes, you know?" He said in a low voice flashing the difficult woman a devilish grin that had most women fanning themselves around them. He knew he wasn't conventionally handsome (even though he would love to know what his partner thought about him after everything that's happened to them in the past few years), but handsome is not the only part of being attractive. Sometimes it's all about the way you carry yourself and the aura you have around you. And he wasn't afraid to admit he had a rather damn good dark appeal to women. The problem was he didn't care for beautiful women. He just wanted one CIA agent that drove him crazy who was somewhat of a chronic actress.

He reached out and lightly twirled a dark curl in his hand and shot the target another look that held a dangerous dark, however filled with some empty promises. She just looked slightly ruffled and he smirked internally. He has already perfected the art of manipulation and he didn't care if he had to exploit his body just to do it. He knew it gave you a rush of power when you were successful – he understood Walker's willingness to use her skills when required all too well. It was dangerously addicting to watch people fall prey to your skills. But Maybe he was enough that she didn't want to find that rush of success anywhere else. He could simply give it to her instead.

He watched the dark haired target, Riviera shoot him a suspicious look. Well, she was good enough not to take a random American up on his offer. She was also good enough to come here seriously prepared because he could make out a gun strapped to the back of her thigh and a knife or two around her waist. He knew what to look for when or after working with Walker for some time.

"Did the blonde ditch your sorry ass?" She dryly asked as she took another swig of her drink. This caused Casey to visually tense because she had watched them the whole time. _Oh, shit_.

This person is not who Casey thought she was.

She's completely different to all the other targets he's face, but he can't quite put his finger on this one.

_I'll play it off that she was a bitch and that she's a better catch. _He told himself. "Honey, that was something pretty to just pass my time while I waited for a better dancing partner. And then I saw you and I knew you could dance the night away in that long slick black dress of yours." When the hell did he get so cheesy? "I left her with her heart racing, her thoughts jumbled and wanting more, you know?" he said coloring his tone with some obvious arrogance. Arrogance made you seem easily disarming to targets like this – it meant you didn't have that many brain cells. But Casey was far from brainless. He knew what he was saying were lies – in his head he hoped she knew very well that he would not leave her – not willingly.

_Oh, wow. You can't get any better, can you?_ He thought. He discretely rolled his eyes.

So apparently his acting was horrible. There was no way she could even think about being jealous. Casey had to try extremely hard for him to not roll his eyes this time. Riviera finally did start to notice the stares the two of them were getting and gritted her teeth at him. He simply shot her a cocky smirk. "All right, you American bastard." She growled shaking with rage that someone was seriously getting in her way. He knew the feeling and furrowed his brows. Who was this woman?

He held out his hand for her to take like a perfect gentleman he probably wasn't most of the time as he grabbed her pulling her hand up to his mouth just as Walker turned around to see them and gave him a long dark stare that said, _Ugh-if-you-kiss-my-hand-like-that-Casey-I'll-break-your-wrist_. Casey nearly scoffed – he knew that very well. Rivera seemed to share Walker's sentiments because the disgust on her face was clear as day.

Really?

18th century much?

She muttered something incoherent under her breath as he placed his hand on her waist and pulled her trough a slow song with mostly just twirling across the dance floor – thank God it wasn't passion oriented tango. He didn't think he could do that with anyone else besides Walker. He thinks she's forever ruined that dance for him. She might end up ruining all the dancing styles that are out there if he let her.

He engaged in a seriously disturbing staring match with his target as they floated around the room, both shooting looks at the calm and collected arms dealer still dancing, and dancing closer to them. She suddenly tensed in his arms and knew they were busted. _Well, shit_. "Who are you?" She growled as she felt his grip tighten around her waist and locked her into the dance. He finally decided he might break the agency's rules. He's only broken them once before and maybe this time he would show equally positive results.

"Who is the person that created the weapon?" Casey quietly asked in a deadly voice. She tensed again and her eyes flashed in utter rage. He did not know how he was going to handle this situation or how he was even going to tell Walker. She was definitely going to shoot him for doing this kind of shit. What the hell was thinking?

"I won't repeat myself." She declared through tightly clenched teeth trying to rip her hand away from his, but he was stronger and kept her trapped in his arms. He gave her a firm look.

"Why are you buying a weapon? Why are you even in this at all? You know, if you buy it you'll destroy a quarter of the earth, right?" He said, guardedly. She gritted her teeth at him. Did she really know what she was doing with that thing?

"Who the hell sent you?" She growled trying to pin him down with a deadly fierce glare. He shook his head.

"Doesn't matter. The point is, Riviera – I'm here to take you in." He said, steadily. She froze as he continued to lead them robotically through the dance. He was giving her a choice.

Life was full of choices.

* * *

**A/N: Not so clear cut agents anymore is it? I'm kinda' of having fun writing Casey as a really cheesy flirt. And who thinks Riviera is her real name? HAHAHA! Any guesses as to who she really might be? **

**I really love mysteries. **

**Yeah, about the action . . . that's going to be in the next chapter hopefully. You won't expect what happens. :) Not at all. **

**Ha. **

**Sorry for the short chapter.**

**Okay, so I really hope this chapter sounded a lot better to you guys because to be honest I think this is the best chapter so far and I'm really glad that some people are still sticking with this and giving it a try. It means so much. You would have no idea. **

**The next chapter should be up within 3 days or so. :)**

**Seriously tell me if I'm updating this too fast or tell me to keep going at the same pace I am now?**

**I also ramble a lot with these author notes so I'm gonna' stop for now. **


	5. Chapter 5 Target

**A/N: hope you guys will enjoy this one. **

* * *

Before Vargas went anywhere, he and Walker stared at each other as people continued to panic around them in the destroyed gala. She could hear Casey still running from her watch up to her ear slightly and if she was right about her hunch she really shouldn't leave him alone with Riviera.

"I need to help my partner. Will you come up to the roof willingly?" Walker asked, slowly. Vargas shrugged and stuffed his hands in his pockets. She narrowed her eyes – hidden hands were suspicious.

"How do I know the CIA isn't out to kill me?" He warily asked. She relaxed, slightly. Ah, smart man.

"Have you killed anyone with your weapons?" She carefully asked knowing that was kind of a pointless question. He gave her a dry look.

"Ms. CIA agent, do you think I'm stupid?" He asked, cautiously. She scoffed at him.

"Vargas I have met so many stupid people in my life it is refreshing to meet one with a brain." She muttered reluctantly. She heard insulting sputters in her ear and nearly snorted.

"SARAH!" Casey exclaimed in serious offense. She really did snort then. Oh yeah, she considered Casey to be one of the most stupid men on earth. Vargas raised an eyebrow at her one-sided conversation, but made no comment on it.

"Right back at you sassy – so are we leaving this shit-show or what?" He asked as he glanced around at the rubble and broken tables. She nodded her head and gestured towards the door with her gun.

"You first – sorry, precaution." She said slowly. She knew she should not be doing this, let alone actually give this a guy a chance to help her because of her partner. He shrugged and walked out of the room in front o her and she followed behind him at a steady pace.

"Casey, how are you doing?" She asked as she walked Vargas into a stairwell and they started climbing the steps to the roof.

On the outside, Casey was running down a dark alley behind a seriously pissed off cold target who looked like she was on the verge of tearing his entire body off into tiny, little pieces. Maybe he would have to kill her after all.

"NOT GOOD! RIVERIA! SERIOUSLY YOU ARE BEING STUPID!" He shouted as he continued to run after her. He heard her growl before she spun around with her guns blazed, but she continued running backwards.

"GO FUCK YOURSELF!" She hissed before she let the bullets fly. Well, she didn't really hold anything back, did she?

"OH, SHIT!" Casey cursed before he ducked and dived out of the line of fire as she rapidly shot at him from down the alley. He quickly rolled behind a dumpster and picked up a metal garbage can lid and started running after again. She stared at him in disbelief as he blocked her bullets with the makeshift shield. He was so damn persistent!

"URGH! WHAT DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND ABOUT GO FUCK YOURSELF?" She shouted at him in fury before she spun around and sprinted around the corner. Casey groaned and rounded the corner right behind her. They were going to be at this for awhile.

"Tell me when you're done with Vargas, Sarah." He said steadily as he trailed the smart ass target who was weaving confusing paths through the inner alleys of the outskirts of Washington. Walker paused as she heard him take a deep breath – the type of breath she knew meant he was going to do something that made her put him on her stupid men list in the first place. She needed to get to him soon.

"I will, but Casey . . ." She said warningly. He ignored her tone as he continued to follow their target.

"I have a plan, Sarah." He whispered before he promptly dropped his direct pursuit of Riviera and ran down a connecting alley. He had an idea. Walker gritted her teeth as his vagueness sparked a familiar annoyance in her. She always hated his plans.

Vargas and she had reached the roof and when they opened the door at the top of the stair case, there was indeed a helicopter and the first extraction team waiting for them to be picked up. He turned around and glanced down at the skirt of her dress and at the explosive he had tagged to her.

"You probably want to take that off – It's real." He said with an apologetic smile. She waved off his apology. He had every right to defend himself against her – people have always been after him or his weapons. She carefully unhooked the bomb from her dress and paused.

"Vargas – can I ask you a favor?" She asked staring at the little black explosive in her hand with an odd expression on her face. He raised an eyebrow as he climbed into the helicopter and took a seat facing her stiff figure standing back on the roof. The night was slightly chilly and blew the hair that escaped her bun into her face. They shared a long look and suddenly he frowned.

"If you're thinking what I think you're thinking you are one crazy woman, Ms. CIA agent . . ." He finally said warily. Walker lightly chuckled.

"Call me Walker." She said with a slight smirk on her face. Vargas blinked. This was going to bite her back in the ass for this later.

"Is that even your real name?" He slowly asked. She gave him a mysterious smile.

"You'll never know for sure will you?" She said tilting her head to the side as she listened to her partner grunt as it sounded like he tripped and nearly hit a wall. She heard a quiet shuffling of clothes and wondered what exactly he was trying to do. It was time to go save his sorry ass before he passes out from all the running.

* * *

Meanwhile, Riviera was pissed. She can't believe she got caught and tagged by another team of agents during her assignment! And the damn male half of the team actually had the audacity of trying to show mercy? She should slit his throat for his insulting actions!

She was going to be in so much shit now. Stupid wannabe arms dealer and once they find out what happened they're going to back out of their deal - she was pretty sure that stupid two-team captured him for their own agency. She had no idea who they were because of their masked faces - but she was going to find out.

She swiftly held her gun close as she ran across a deserted street and flew down another alley with a very specific destination in mind. Even if she failed her part of the deal, they were still going to need her for her brains as well. Though they don't know who she is yet. She rounded a tight corner and nearly barreled right into a hunchbacked old man who has been slowly making his way down the path. She restlessly jogged in place as she waited for him to clear the entrance and let her pass. She was quickly running out of her patience.

"HURRY UP OLD MAN!" She growled irritably. His eyes sudden shot up to lock with hers and she froze as she stared at annoyingly familiar blue eyes of her current opposing target or whatever he is - shit he just didn't know just when to give up did he?

"Where are you going, Riviera? Are you going back to the dealers? You know they are going to hurt you, you know?" Casey said throwing the shabby coat off of him and blocking her desired exit. Riviera clenched her jaw and quickly took several steps back.

"God you Americans really don't know shit. I know they are going to hurt me and probably kill me - but where I'm going or why I'm going there is none of your God damn business!" She growled at him as she quickly scanned the area trying to figure out the fastest way to get around him or rethink her route there. Casey knew exactly what she was thinking.

"You won't be able to shake me off of your tail by being this obvious. If you want to get rid of someone you need to weed them out and hide your tracks through crowds or dense environments." He said steadily. She stared at him in disbelief. What the fuck?

Now he actually wondered why she really had guns.

"Stop giving me fucking pointers I know what I'm doing, damn it!" She shouted in rage. He gave her a steady look.

"Do you? Do you know what you are doing? How old are you really Riviera? 19? 20? Or even younger?" He asked carefully. She froze - he had her. He knew it. She was barely an a adult, damn it.

"You're too young to be in this field Riviera - how did you even get mixed up in our world?" He asked sadly. She tensed - she didn't want to hear this American's stupid confusing words anyone.

"I'm 19 and I am not going to die tonight!" She growled at him before she spun around and sprinted down the alley hell bent on running until she couldn't run anymore. Casey sighed and quickly followed after her.

"She is young." A calm voice said in his ear. He grimaced.

"I know. She looks much older then she acts - that's why I suspected." He said quietly as he followed her at a distance now - he wanted to know where she was going.

"Where are you, Walker?" He asked quietly. She glanced down at her phone and sighed.

"I'm following your phone tracker. I'm still 10 minutes behind you." Walker said evenly into her watch as she quickly made her way down the same alleys he had been in 20 minutes ago. He sighed as he hid himself in the shadows and watched Riviera search for a specific building. Why would she do this? They were definitely going to kill her.

"She's looking for the dealers." He said tensely. He heard Walker take a steady breath.

"Is she suicidal?" Walker cautiously asked. Casey considered this.

"I don't think so. She said she wasn't going to die tonight. There must be a reason why she has to go back, no matter what." He said steadily as he continued to watch Riviera tensely scan a packed street of tall buildings lining the sea. Great view - horrible corrupted deeds probably occurred within the walls though.

"Be careful, Casey. She may be young, but she is not a novice. She's trained." Walker said cautiously. Casey tensed as disturbing thoughts flashed through his mind.

"What type of trained, Sarah...?" He asked carefully. But he already knew the answer. Walker took a deep breath.

"Casey, she's an assassin." Walker said damningly, shutting her eyes and clenching her jaw. Damn it why didn't she see it before?

Casey froze.

"Holy shit, Sarah. She is just 19 years old!" Casey said in disbelief. Walker gritted her teeth.

"You have to start young, John. Probably six, seven, eight." Walker said steadily. Casey tensed. Well, now they definitely needed to stop before she either one of them actually killed her.

How the hell could they make a mistake like that and not notice she's one of them? But why is someone like her so young and into the field already?

"What does that mean exactly?" He asked, dreading what she would say. Walker steeled her eyes.

"I don't know. She's probably replacing someone." She slowly answered. He froze.

"She's going to kill herself if she keeps up at the rate right now!" Casey exclaimed in horror. Walker angrily rubbed her forehead as she quickly sped up.

"Casey. Casey, I don't think her intention was to buy the weapon. I think her real target is one of the arms dealer's leader." She said, darkly. Casey swore and spun around to watch Riviera clench her fists and walk right into one of the buildings at the end of the street. She was as good as dead. He didn't even have to do anything. She really was on a suicide mission.

"Holy shit she lied. There is no way she is surviving tonight. What is wrong with you fucking Polish and Russian people lying so dramatically?" Casey growled in frustration. Walker would have shot him a seriously nasty look if he was in front of her right now.

"It's our job to be liars, Casey." She reminded him steadily. He suddenly tensed.

"Yeah, but I'm not going to just sit around and let a 19 year old die just because some idiots in stuffy collared shirts back in mother fucking Russia or Polish or whatever place it is told her she needed to do a mission fucking impossible." Casey growled seething with anger. Walker suddenly tensed.

"John…" Walker said warningly as she suddenly started moving even faster. Casey stepped out of the shadows and walked around the building towards the back. There had to be another way in.

"I'm going in, Sarah." He said determinedly. Walker clenched her jaw – holy shit.

"JOHN!" She growled - she was practically sprinting now.

"I hope you're close, Sarah." He said as he took a deep breath while he stared at a locked door he could effortlessly unlock. He jimmied it for a second and it easily clicked open.

"JOHN CASEY, YOU DAMN IDIOT!" Walker screamed in her watch and she flew down an alley not too far behind him at all. He smiled grimly as he walked into a building he didn't know if he would ever walk out of. She was going to kill him. She was going to fucking kill him for walking into one of the most heavily armed underground bases in the world for no fucking reason. Sarah Walker was going to murder John Casey for being a reckless idiot!

He had shit for brains – he honestly did!

Casey steeled his eyes and he quietly made his way through a relatively silent floor of a building that looked like any ordinary office building – he highly doubted that though. He heard a quiet commotion down a hall and noiselessly made his way towards it. He passed several locked rooms and tried not to think about what happened behind most of these walls. He didn't want to think about exactly what type of business transactions occurred in this type of place. He listened to Wakker's angry rapid breathing as she ran as fast as she possibly could – she might not make it in time. He approached an open door at the end of the hall and steeled his nerves. He instantly started hearing voices.

"Riviera, you failed to complete your assignment – why the fuck did you come back?" A angry voice growled from the open doorway as Casey was pressed up against the wall outside.

"There are a lot of reasons why I hunted you down." Riviera said tightly. Casey heard a gun cock – but he knew it wasn't hers.

"What the fuck are you talking about Riviera? You botched your first and last assignment from us – you're a shit assassin. You let Javier Vargas get away!" The voice shouted at her.

Casey couldn't see it, but he listened as Riviera laughed darkly. She shook her head and suddenly leveled her gun with a slightly stunned arms dealer's face. His men in the room all instantly tensed and readied to shoot her on sight if she made one wrong move.

"I don't give a shit about Vargas. You're my real target, Lucas. And my name isn't Riviera. It's Anastasia and once you're dead I'll be the next new assassin of the Hand." Anastasia said dangerously.

* * *

**A/N: Apparently all Russian and Polish people are crazy intense…and did I mention a little crazy?**

**Is she gonna die? Or is Casey gonna' try and be a hero? You wonder after trying to save so many people and killed so many people why he joined the NSA.**

**Also, Anastasia means "Resurrection" in Russian.**

**I kind if figured out Casey and Walker's ship name-it'a weird. "Sassy" is what I came up with. **

**Well, let me know how this one went. I really hope you guys like this one. **


	6. Chapter 6 Dare

**A/N: Enjoy.**

* * *

Everyone held their breath as Anastasia gripped her gun firmly in her hand as she stared down her final true target. Casey clenched his jaw from around the corner because he knew this was a no-win scenario for sure. Fuck, why were Russians so damn dramatic about their kills? Why couldn't she do it in a more subtle fashion way? Why couldn't she just snipe the poor bastard from far away and run before she got caught? Why? Why? Why? His slammed his eyes shut because he knew the answer already.

Because she is young and reckless.

"If you shoot me, Anastasia you get shot down dead by my men anyway." Lucas said threateningly. She narrowed her eyes.

"If I don't shoot you I'm dead anyway." She growled as she shoved the gun harder against his forehead. Casey heard several guns cock and took a deep breath. Casey and Anastasia steeled their eyes at the same time and before she could take her shot and get shot in retaliation Casey pushed himself off the wall and appeared in doorway and fired several alarming shots into the air behind them all.

"HEY YOU, WASHINGTON ASSHOLES! WHY IS NO ONE GUARDING THE DAMN ENTRANCE?" Casey hollered across the room and everyone spun around to stare at the new arrival still in a tuxedo and all. Before anyone could blink he rapidly shot the tall glass wall of a huge aquarium on the left side of the room and caused the entire place to be flooded with fish and disgusting seawater instantly. Anastasia used that exact moment of confusion to spin around and shove her gun back into a shocked Lucas's face.

"Night, Lucas!" She growled before she promptly pulled the trigger and watched the bastard fall to the floor in front of her. She glanced down at her gun with a wary look on her face.

"Wow. I think he's really dead. I did not plan this far ahead." She said blankly staring at her work. She didn't expect to actually succeed in her final assignment. Casey nearly fell flat on his face in shock - what the fuck is she saying? She was doing great until this far!

50 guns were suddenly trained on the young Russian assassin standing idly in the center of the room.

"Anastasia, you are a dead woman." One of the men standing off to the side said dangerously. She gave the man a dry look. She wasn't afraid to die - she just wished she had a few more years maybe. Clint growled in utter disbelief before he pulled out a small canister and smoked the entire room within seconds. Anastasia coughed as the black sooty smoke entered her lungs. What the fuck is he doing?

"RUN YOU IDIOT! RUN!" Casey shouted though the smoke from somewhere behind her. She blinked and suddenly there was an arm shooting out of the smoke that roughly grabbed her by the back of her dress and literally dragging her body out of the room. She honestly had no idea what the hell was going on.

"THEY'RE ESCAPING!" An angry Italian voice shouted through the smoke. Casey didn't a give a rat's ass where they were going and just started running down a random hall so that they could get as far away from the angry armed Washington mob as fast as possible.

"Casey, that was the most failed rescue mission I have ever had the displeasure of listening to." An out of breath voice growled into his watch. Casey's face darkened.

"Shut up, Sarah. I'm kind of busy right now!" Casey growled as he ran down another hall with bullets firing on his heels and still dragging a bewildered HAND assassin in training behind him.

"You're still talking to your partner?" Anastasia shouted in disbelief as she tore herself way from his grasp and started running on her own. He shot her a dark look as they rounded the corner.

"Shut up, you stupid fucking crazy little Russian! I just saved your damn life!" Casey hissed at her. She glowered at him and nearly lunged forward to strangle him. Bullets flew through the air between them and they both ducked and started running again. Like holy shit - they were all the same damn it!

They ran down another narrow hall and suddenly froze as they heard several heavy footfalls from the side they were running towards. Yelena shot him a sharp look which he effectively ignored as he glanced at the door leading into the building's floor to floor stairwell.

"We're going up, Anastasia!" Casey shouted as he violently kicked open the door and suddenly shoved her small body through the doorway. No wonder she was so small! She was fucking 19!

"What?" Anastasia shrieked in disbelief. They both tensed as they heard voices shout from both ends of the hall with gunfire not far behind. Casey whipped his eyes back to the kid and glared at her.

"Fuck! Just you- stupid kid – just go god damn it!" He shouted back as he roughly pushed her up the stairs even though his hands felt like they were touching acid when he touched her. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. He kept the self-disgust that he had tried to charm a girl 19 years his junior and locked it away to deal with later. God damn it he felt like a damn pedophile. Walker must have heard something in his angry voice because her sudden words nearly made him miss his step and smash his face into the stairs they were racing up.

"You're not a pedophile, Casey." A still harshly breathing voice said in his ear with firmness in her voice that only slightly dulled his tortured self-hating thoughts. He doesn't know what the HAND has made Anastasia do as part of her training, but it doesn't matter if she deserved to get taken advantage of or not. She was still a kid. He tensed as he kept running up the stairs and shooting Anastasia warning looks every time she glanced back at him and even looked like she was going to consider to stop running.

"I'm not a good person, Sarah." He said sharply as he waited for Anastasia to fly around the corner of the stairs before he grabbed the railing and swung himself onto the next set of stairs as well. He heard Walker take a deep breath in the middle of her rapid breathing and running.

"Maybe you're not the best person out there, Casey, but you're definitely not the worst." Walker said firmly before he heard a loud shattering of glass followed by gunfire.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

He froze and nearly had a heart attack right there on a stupid flight of stairs until he heard her voice again.

"Oh shut up you, babies! Be happy I shot you in the thigh and not your head you spineless rats! If you were the Washington weapons expert in the gala you would have been beheaded or something equally excruciatingly painful for sniffling like that!" Walker shouted in disgust at the worthless goons in front of her. Honestly they were pathetic. No wonder The HAND made this Anastasia final training assignment – if she can't handle this she can't ever handle a real serious assignment.

Casey had to physically stop himself before he sighed in relief and she called him a worrywart or something equally insulting. She was relatively safe. but more importantly Walker was finally here. Now he just had to stay alive to be able to leave this shithole with her. Then he could get her alone and finally get to hear her answer to all his questions. She couldn't have any more denials left. They've already covered everything there could possibly be wrong with them being together. He needed to survive this shit mission - she needed to say she wanted him too.

He was just starting to feel a serious burn in the back of his legs when he and Anastasia ran up one more flight of stairs and she came to a sudden halt that nearly had him crashing right into her.

There were no more stairs.

"Well, genius, we've reached the damn roof. What brilliant plan are you going to whip out of your ass now huh?" Anastasia growled as she turned around and glared at him as they reached the double doors that led onto the roof. They both tensed as they felt the stairs shake as a door several levels below them exploded off its hinges and several loud voices echoed up the hollow staircase – they found them.

"THEY WENT UP THE STAIRS!" someone hollered several floors below. Casey and Anastasia both clenched their jaws and stared at each other trying to rapidly come up with some way out of this situation.

"Get on the roof! Get on the roof and barricade the door!" He heard someone sternly order in his ear. He angrily shook his head as he continued his intense staring match with Anastasia.

"That's like trapping ourselves in a corner, Walker!" He said stiffly. He heard her growl in frustration followed by a rain of gunfire before something that sounded like a body crashed through glass – possibly herself.

"Doesn't matter just do it!" she shouted heatedly. He tensed – they were running out of time anyway.

"Get on the roof Anastasia." Casey growled against his will. They really didn't have time as the footsteps climbing the stairs beneath them were coming closer. Anastasia gaped at him.

"Are you crazy?" She shouted in disbelief. He suddenly pointed his gun at her forehead.

Yeah he was crazy – he knew that a long time ago.

"Do it, Anastasia." He said through gritted teeth. She clenched her jaw and spun around to kick open the door leading into the roof and tensely walked through the doorway shooting vicious looks over her shoulder. He quickly followed after her before he spun around and slammed the door shut. He dragged several boxes sitting on the roof in front of the door – it was only going to hold for a few moments.

"Great now we are sitting ducks!" she hissed. He glared daggers at her.

"Shut up and be grateful you're alive damn it!" he shouted at her. Anastasia's eyes flashed just like walker's do. It was downright scary.

"Why should I? You're just going to kill me yourself anyway!" she growled viciously. He shook his head in disbelief.

"Why are you working for The HAND, Anastasia? Why are you letting them use you?" He asked instead of denying her accusation. If she kept this up it wasn't going to be him who killed her. She tensed.

"Who the fuck are you?" she shouted repeating her earlier question. He froze – she still didn't know?

"Oh, you're going to love meeting my partner." He muttered under his breath. He listened to a sharp intake of breath in his ear before he heard another window shatter in his ear and in the air around them. Casey and Anastasia both tensed as they frantically tried to locate the reason for the sound. She gave him a sharp look as she faced away from the wide ledge of the building.

"Why should I care who the hell she is?" She growled heatedly. Casey gave her a long look and then raised his eyes to lock his gaze with steeled brown ones over her shoulder. He felt his breath catch in his throat as he stared at a scratched up and heavily breathing Sarah Walker in a completely ripped and ruined red dress, gun in her hand and a pissed look on her face. She was covered in sparkling shards of glass and clear murder her eyes directed right at him. Her eyes held so many dark and deadly promises. He thinks his heart just spasmed. She must have gotten onto the roof off the last floor - well she was dramatic. She tore her furious gaze away from him to deal with him later and locked eyes with the tense young Russian who had just spun around to glare at her.

"You should care, Anastasia – because you took other people's place when they died." Walker said carefully as she ripped more of the edges from her already torn at part dress. Anastasia froze as she stared at a woman in front of her

"Holy shit…" Anastasia under her breath as she took several steps back. Walker gave her a steady look.

What the hell was wrong with her now?

Anastassia didn't like how Walker knows all of this.

It was scaring her shitless.

"Did those people already give you the enhancers and repressors, Anastasia?" Walker asked tensely. She narrowed her eyes.

"Screw you!" Anastasia growled viciously. Walker didn't even blink. Well that was good enough.

"You're stuck now. Did they mess with your damn head yet? Did you start losing memories of days or weeks between assignments yet?" Walker asked darkly. Casey froze – what the fuck was she talking about?

How did Walker know all about this when Casey didn't know himself?

Anastasia froze in place and Casey swore he saw fear flash across her eyes.

"Tell me, damn it!" Walker shouted clenching her hand around her gun as she listened to the stomping of footsteps behind the barricaded door behind her partner. They were almost out of time.

"I don't know!" Anastasia shouted back slamming her eyes shut. Natasha tensed.

"Shit." Walker growled before she turned away from the girl pulsing with rage. She was done. She was screwed for life.

"You better hope you can live with your decisions." Walker said warningly right before the door leading onto the roof burst open and the three of them had every single fucking gun in the building trained on them. The roof quickly flooded with pissed hitmen now and Casey swiftly backed away from the door with his hand tightly gripping his gun.

He felt himself knock back into his tense partner as he reached the edge of the roof with only 20 stories of air and a long coastline of storming waters behind them. He saw Anastasia on to opposite end of the roof tensely holding her gun as well. One of the Italians glanced between the 3 of them and snorted.

"It's 3 against 20. I really don't think you have a chance." One weapons expert said with a dark laugh. They all clenched their jaws as they heard 20 guns click in unison.

Casey glanced down as he saw a small black object rolled across the concrete floor towards the mob of Italians and felt a confident hand grab the back of his shirt with a firm grip.

"I dare you to jump, Casey with your eyes open, the adrenaline pumping through your veins and no parachute in sight because otherwise your never going to hear my answer to your questions." Se whispered steadily in his ear. He froze as she repeated the same words he spoke to her before they took on this mission months ago followed by the sound of a telltale beep. Then the entire roof exploded in front of his very eyes and he felt himself be dragged over the edge of the building and falling backwards towards the dark black sea that lined the Italian coastline.

He quickly spun around in the air and wrapped his arms around his brilliant partner as they fell through the air, wind whipping through their hair and eyes locked as a fire blazed behind them. She raised an eyebrow as he inhaled sharply and just held her tighter.

He really needed to stop getting turned on at the worst possible moments.

_Damn the shit you do to me Sarah Walker_. He thought.

* * *

**A/N: Okay, I hope you guys liked this one.** **Originally I was going to post this until next week, but I'm going to busy by then so I'm posting this now. **

**And the tension keeps rising. What will happen to our favorite agents? Will they fall prey or will they go beyond the imaginary line? **

**How is everyone liking Anastasia? She's feisty and has a temper, but she's really fun to write.**

**Let me know what you guys think and review. **

**And if you guys know the show Suits, you should check out my new FF for that show. **


	7. Chapter 7 Answer

**A/N: This should be your FAVORITE chapter of this story hands down for Casey and Walker. Or as I like to call it "Sassy."**

* * *

Somewhere far down the shore miles away from the Washington shoreline crowded with buildings that belonged to weapon experts and arms dealers, there was a man driving along the coast scanning the waters as he went. His slick black car coasted down the road as he searched for something. Several yards ahead of him he saw a flash of white light flicker from behind a boulder in the crashing waters and he slowed his car down as he got closer to the source of the light. He finally came to a stop and stepped out of his car with a wary look on his face. He glanced around to make sure no one else was around before he carefully walked down the beach towards the light. As he approached the boulder he caught sight of a bruise and banged up blonde who was breathing harshly with an arm wrapped around her waist. The man sighed as he crouched down into the warm waters and kneeled beside the tense girl.

"You need to do better than this, Anastasia if you want to be the next HAND." He said quietly. The soaked and bleeding barely adult glowered at him fiercely. He really wasn't fazed – they were all fierce in this field of work.

"Shut up, Damon. I didn't know someone else's assassination was going on and a pair of intelligence agents were going to be there!" Anastasia spat. He gave her a warning look. It was unnerving.

"You should have. You're supposed to know this already." He said darkly. She spat blood onto the sandy beach as she tried to pick herself off the ground and nearly collapsed right then and there. She was beyond injured. She got hit with a good chunk of the explosion before she managed to throw herself off the edge. She was about to pass out from her wounds and yet she still glared at her stupid trainer like she could take him. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Learn when you have to be tough and when you need to just let your damn pride simmer, Anastasia. I've trained countless girls like you. You don't all start out strong." He said carefully. She tensed.

"I will start out strong." she said heatedly. He paused as he stared at the young but world wary Russian.

"You have to work for it." He said firmly before he promptly picked up her broken and bruised body so that she could fight another day.

"Fuck you, Damon." She growled and she gripped his shirt tightly. He snorted.

"Yeah, no, we're definitely never doing that – I learned from that mistake." He muttered and he carried her back to his car. He had had enough HAND assassins screwing him over to last him a lifetime. Once was more than enough.

...

Meanwhile a mile away from the shoreline of crowded Washington assholes and violent assassins, two drenched and exhausted agents washed up on a deserted beach coughing and hacking up dangerous amounts of seawater. They both dragged their tired bodies onto the drier part of the beach and collapsed onto the sand beside each other.

"Sarah – you're crazy." He gasped as he stared up at the bright full moon in the dark sky above their heads. She snorted.

"Crazy is the reason we're alive, Casey." She said dryly. He shook his head and laughed.

"I never said I didn't think it was brilliant crazy." He said fondly. She raised an eyebrow as she tried to catch her breath.

"You're proving your weirdness again, Casey." She said warily. He rolled his eyes and slowly calmed his rapid breath as they both glanced at each other and confirmed visually that they were both still alive.

"Do you think she is dead?" Casey asked quietly. Walker slowly shook her head.

"No I don't think Anastasia is dead. She had to have jumped. But we're going to tell the General everything that happened tonight." Walker said firmly. Casey furrowed his brow in confusion.

"Why would we do that?" He asked slowly. He was actually hoping to keep this between them so didn't have much to do later on. He watched her expression darken.

"Because even if we kill her Casey…some other person is going to be forced to take her place. It's a vicious cycle." Walker said angrily. Casey sighed. She was right. She was always right.

"Okay. I can deal with that." He said reluctantly. Sometimes you had to accept the lesser evil in the situation. Sometimes there was no right choice.

"But she'll probably come after us when she's healed." Walker muttered under her breath as she lay on the wet beach beside her partner. Casey gaped at her.

"Sarah." He said in a dry time. She stared at him.

"I'm an agent, Casey." She growled at him. He stared at her for several moments before he finally sighed and dropped his head back onto the wet sand.

"You know I used to dream about the day you would like me enough to be jealous of a target." He said quietly with a small smile on his face. He felt her tense beside him as they stared up at the slightly cloudy sky and the few stars they could make out twinkling above them.

He was done waiting.

"Please tell me you weren't playing up the merciful-agent move just to see me jealous." She said as she pinched the bridge of her nose. She felt him snort beside her.

So was she, but didn't know how to exactly handle it or him.

"No that was real – though maybe I was being a bit nicer to her then I normally would with a target…" He said guiltily. She turned to her head and gave him an unimpressed look.

"You're pathetic, John." She said dryly. He scowled at her before he promptly rolled over on top of her and trapped her beneath his weight. She narrowed her eyes at his bold move. She could still disable him if she wanted to – he was such a lucky bastard she didn't cut him off for doing stuff like this.

"Sarah…" He said quietly as he hovered above her. She tensed – he was doing this right now?

"Don't start, Casey." She growled. He angrily shook his head.

"No, you are going to listen! At least listen to me, damn it!" He said heatedly. She gritted her teeth, but said nothing. He took a deep breath.

"Sarah, I've never wanted anyone in my entire life. Not really. I was always too busy trying to stay alive. But Walker, I know now that I've never wanted anything else as much as I've wanted this." He whispered as he cupped her face in his warm palms and lightly dragged his thumb across her cool tense cheek. She was staring at him with warning eyes but he didn't care - she was always looking at him like that. Instead he gave her a soft look. "Please let me have you, Sarah? For however long it's possible. Who cares about forever? I don't need those promises. I don't need lies, Walker. I just need you right here, right now. What's holding you back? Please tell me." He said quietly as he stared at her with all the emotions he has been keeping locked away for the last few crazy hours. But now they were finally alone and she was going to see them whether she wants to or not. Walker blinked as she took in a rather uneven breath. Holy shit did he just say all that?

"You're being downright cheesy again, Casey." She whispered. He laughed softly.

"Apparently you don't understand the fine art of subtly. " he said teasingly. She scoffed. She was the best actress in the world - as if she didn't understand undertones.

"I understand subtly fine, Casey - I just choose to ignore yours." She muttered begrudgingly. He shot her a dirty look.

"Well, I'm not letting you ignore me anymore. We're always dancing around this - what are we dancing around, again? I forget sometimes because our emotions get so loud I don't know what the hell we're doing anymore." He said with a deep chuckle. Natasha scowled at him.

"Casey, there is sand in places sand should not be. We're soaking wet, my hair is a mess and you are the one who is going to catch a damn cold. Why are we having this conversation here?" She asked with a sigh - but really she just wanted him to stop. She watched his eyes fall and held back a wince.

"You're avoiding my questions with sarcasm again." He said quietly. She looked away from his down casted eyes and stared off into the distance at miles of open shoreline.

"Sarcasm is a useful tool." She muttered. He used his hand to gently bring her eyes back to his own.

"I don't want sarcasm right now, Sarah. I just want us to stop running from whatever the hell this is." He whispered softly as he brushed the wet bangs out of her face and stared at her with his too blue eyes that just kept asking and asking and asking. She stared back and finally just sighed.

"Casey, why do you want me?" She asked in defeat. Really, he was just too much. He suddenly shook his head.

"I don't want you," He said quietly and felt her freeze beneath him but he continued anyway. "Not just like how you normally want someone. I need you. It's different." He said firmly. She scoffed. Yeah right!

"What do you mean different?" She muttered. He gave her weak smile and continued to brush her cheek with his thumb.

"Do you want me to repeat my little story again?" He asked teasingly - he was only half-joking. She suddenly looked like she ate something sour.

"Oh god no - once was more than enough." She said in distaste. She could only handle so much cheese from him. He laughed breathlessly and suddenly brushed his lips lightly against hers and felt her freeze again. He pulled back and she gave him a searching look which he calmly returned with a determined one of his own.

"You know, now I'm never going to stop asking right?" He said slowly. She snorted.

"I have rather good deduction skills, Casey. I think I can figure that out." she said dryly. He suddenly fell silent.

"Your sarcasm is back." He said quietly. She sighed.

"It's a reflex." she muttered. He smiled weakly at her – he knew it was hard. He always knew it would be hard – but he knew it would be worth it too.

"Tell me why we shouldn't be together." he requested softly. She gave him a suspicious look but complied.

"Because we're partners who work in a dangerous job and shouldn't be compromised." She muttered. He waited until he caught her eyes and gave her a steady look.

"I think you and I both know we've already been doing compromising things even before this and still managed to stay alive during missions." He said quietly running his hand through her wet now dark blonde hair due to the night. She glanced away guilty. She knew that. She always knew that. Missions weren't as real as off time though. She could let him do those things during missions – but when it was just them on their own time it was so much more real. Like right now.

"There are fraternization regulations." She said quietly. He snorted.

"We can ways go and do a little MIA." he said simply. He's already told her all of this before – he just want to wash all her doubts away one by one. She sighed.

"I kill and take people in as a job." she said dryly. His own expression went blank. If she was trying to be funny – it wasn't working.

"Well, what do you know we have something in common." He said sarcastically. She scowled at him as he played with her hair. His tone was definitely not matching his actions – contradicting bastard.

"I don't plan on getting married." She said firmly. He scoffed – as if he didn't know that!

"Agents don't get married – marriage is overrated." He said frankly. She gave him a measured look.

"I am never going to change from the way I act out on the missions." She said slowly. He gave her a brilliant blinding smile.

What's with all the excuses?

"I never want you to change. I like you exactly how you are, Sarah. Exactly the way you are." He whispered sincerely. She gave him a wary look and he watched her struggle to say her next doubt. She's never told anyone before – she never wanted to think about it. There was no point in thinking about it – but she knew he deserved to know.

"What is it, Walker?" he asked quietly. She took a shaky breath and they stared at each other as she tried to find the right words – until she finally did.

"I don't want children, Casey." She whispered with a slightly strained expression. He gave her a pained sympathetic look and swiftly pulled her into a tight embrace and buried his face in her hair. He felt her take an unease breath as she slammed her eyes shut as he held her tighter.

"It's okay, Walker. It's okay. I don't mind. We're not good for children anyway. Besides we have him if you want to pretend. " He whispered softly in her ear as he tried to make a joke and ease the tension. He felt her shake her head.

"Casey, you just don't get I . . ." she whispered in an empty voice. "I did unbelievable things in my past. I was a heartless person. I have a ledger that is somewhat dripping red and it's never going to go away no matter have much I try. No matter how many missions we go on, Casey. No matter how many bastards we take out and stop them from hurting other people. She whispered painfully as she gripped his wet shirt and stared at him with haunted eyes. He stared back at her with all the regrets he carried as well swirling in his own.

"I have a ledger too, Sarah." He whispered back. She shook her head and he watched as a lost expression cloud her face and dulled her eyes.

"No Casey - I've killed innocent people. I've killed people who didn't deserve to die." She whispered as the guilt started eating at her, again. She always kept it locked away but it was always simmering below the surface of her iron control. It never left her in peace. He took a deep breath and gently rested his forehead against her shoulder.

"You don't think I have, Walker?" He asked quietly. He felt her freeze in his arms and he looked away guilty. He never told her that he did. He never told her that he made mistakes. That once upon a time he killed people that he wished more than anything that he didn't. He wished more than life itself that he didn't pull the trigger. He would give anything, anything to bring them back. He would give his soul if it meant they could have theirs back.

But he can't do that.

They can't change the past.

They can't bring people back.

They were silent for more than 10 minutes as they listened to the waves of the sea crash against the empty beach behind them as Walker quietly watched the sky and Casey simply watched her.

"We don't deserve it." She finally said softly without looking away from the pitch black sky. Casey's face fell and he softly brushed his hand across her cheek.

"You're right. We don't." He said softly with the pain clear in his voice. She finally tore her eyes away from the darkness of space and stared up at his blue eyes which were glowing faintly in the moonlight. She reached up and gently grabbed him by his shoulders.

"Then how can we be happy, Casey? How can we share something only reserved for people who actually deserve happiness?" she asked shaking him slightly. He gave her a sad look and tried to find the words that would finally set her free of that doubt. It was true – they didn't deserve happiness. He looked back at her subdued eyes and brushed the hair that had fallen over her face away again and slid his hand down to gently cup her cool cheek.

"Then let's not share a happy life together, Walker. Let's share our punishment together. Forever atoning for our regrets. Forever trying to build a world that is always crashing down around us. Forever working to clear a ledger that is probably, permanently stained in red." He whispered fervently. She froze as he pressed them closer together and stared at her with honest and painful eyes. Maybe they could never truly be happy – but they could be something that is not exactly miserable either. He searched her eyes and still saw one more doubt.

"What else Sarah? There is something else – I can feel it." He said softly. She took a deep breath and stared at him dead in the eye.

"Spies don't fall in love." She said evenly. He tensed, but didn't look away from her honest eyes. She really didn't believe in love. Not the magic. Not the butterflies. Not the flowers or the roses. But he thinks he knows what type of love she is talking about – the kind where you give everything to someone else and they give you everything in return. He knew she couldn't do that. But he only needed enough – he only needed enough to be able to say he's the keeper of a part of Sarah Walker's soul. He already knew their souls were broken slightly beyond repair.

So if she didn't believe in the all-consuming love then he didn't believe in that type of love either. She looked wary when he didn't pull away, but in reality they only drew closer.

"Maybe I'm not looking for love – maybe we can have something different. Something no one else ever had." He whispered staring at her with painful hope. He's waited too long to meet someone like her. He's been alone for too long to ever let her truly walk away from him. She searched his eyes and he knew she saw the honest fact that he was going to follow her for the rest of her life. He would never let her go. He would never stop asking. He would never stop waiting for the day when she wakes up from her stubborn daze and realizes that John Casey is never going to leave her.

He smiled weakly at her as he leaned forward and whispered something softly in her ear. She sighed in defeat and dropped her head back against the sandy beach as he smiled down at her. He watched the lingering doubts finally fade after so many months – she finally believed him. She finally believed what he's been trying to say this whole time.

"If I say yes – if I actually say yes will you finally, finally stop acting like a desperate man?" she asked tiredly. Emotions made her tired – plain and simple. She could practically feel his smile brush against her nose as he pulled back to give her its full blown effect.

"How can someone be desperate when they have everything they ever wanted, Sarah?" He said teasingly. She scowled at his playful tone, but finally took a deep breath as she watched the playfulness recede in his eyes as he waited. He didn't have to wait very long.

"Okay. Okay, Casey. You can have m..." He swiftly slammed his lips down on hers before she could even finish her careful sentence. She was stunned for a moment by the rush of emotion he poured into the kiss as he wrapped his arms around her waist and held onto her more tightly than anyone else has in her entire life. Once upon a time she used to find hugs extremely uncomfortable. She still finds them generally uncomfortable. But now she kind of likes his – just his though.

She finally relaxed for once in her life and slowly wrapped her own arms around his neck and drew him closer. She closed her eyes and let him deepened the kiss as he pressed her harder into the sandy beach, in the middle of nowhere, with only the light of the moon as their witness. No one else was allowed to see. No one else was allowed to know. But this wasn't for anyone else – it was just for them.

She felt him run his hands down her sides and felt him smile against her lips when she actually let him feel her shiver from his touch. For once she didn't stop anything from showing. She let him see her reaction to him. She let him in just a little bit. She let her emotions run wild.

She felt him suddenly bring his hands up to cup her cheeks in his rough strong hands which she used to deny felt really good pressed up against her skin. She denied a lot of thing about him. She denied he was attractive. She denied she was attractive to him. She denied that he made her feel things no one should be able to make her feel. She denied that he broke every single preconceived notion she ever had about men. She denied that he was being honest when he said he actually wanted her – that he could actually want someone like her. She denied that she wanted them to be more than just partners for a long time. She denied that maybe she was scared for what this meant for their partnership. She denied that now after every single kiss they're going to share in the future, was going to be the best damn kiss of her life. She denied that they always just got better and she also denied that she didn't want to be anywhere or with anyone else. She denied that she just wanted him.

She stopped denying all those things for once.

She brought one hand up to his own face which was covered in a bit of day old scuff that only added to his ruggedness which she genuinely found attractive. She hesitantly brushed her hand over his forehead, his eyebrow, his closed eyes, his cheek and his chin. She felt him shudder violently and then suddenly he pressed forward and kissed her even harder and with more passion then before – if that was even possible. She felt him kiss her breath away and she didn't care if any of this was wrong anymore.

Casey felt several walls he always knew she kept up even during their last few, almost encounters suddenly melt away and he thinks he was finally, finally, kissing Sarah Walker, the real girl under all the masks, the glares, the harsh words and the icy exterior that everyone else saw earlier. And he thinks maybe he would be the only one to see this Walker. Maybe he would be lucky enough to be the only one to ever see this Walker. He yearned to get to know this Walker. But he loved her badass side too. He admired her strength. He respected her opinions and instincts. He was attracted to her light, but also her contradicting dark she tried to hide away from the world. He felt for her tragic past and hoped she would have a better future. And he was just so, so relieved she wanted him too.

The pesky need for oxygen was finally starting to nag at the back of his head and he didn't want to end the kiss in fear of everything they've built being ripped away – but at the same time he wanted it to end for now so that they could finally start something new together. They could finally take a step forward together. So he reluctantly pulled away from her tempting lips and they both gasped for much needed air. He gently leaned his forehead against hers and they breathed together for several moments.

"How do you feel?" He asked still completely out of breath. She shook her head looking slightly dazed. He has never seen a dazed Sarah Walker. He hasn't seen a lot of this slightly softer side of her.

"I don't know – I think I feel something." She whispered sounding slightly breathless as well. He smiled brightly and maybe it was okay if she finally gave him a weak soft smile in return.

"Something is a good start." He laughed lightly.

* * *

**A/N: I ACTUALLY WROTE IT! SHE SAID YES! SHE SAID YES!**

**By the way the only reason Caaey and Walker is together now is because I ran out of reasons why they **_**shouldn't**_** be and I was getting bored. LMAO. There were a LOT of problems in their way. Don't think it's going to be perfect. There still are A LOT more problems for the future. But enjoy the moment for now.**

**ISN'T THIS A GREAT**** CHAPTER SURPRISE?**

**Oh I am NEVER going to tell you the last thing Casey whispered in her ear before she**_**finally**_** said yes. Have fun imagining that. Why do I have to imagine it all for you right?**

**Any guesses though?**

**PLEASE leave a review if you have read the story so far! This is like the great big milestone chapter! I really want to know what you guys thought of their relationship up until now**

**AND MY FRIEND DECIDED TO TAKE MY PHONE AND LEAVE REVEIW ON MY STORIES WHEN I WAS STILL LOGGED IN! SORRY ABOUT THAT! I WANT TO RIP HER HEAD OFF! **


	8. Chapter 8 Compromised

**A/N: Originally I was going to post this up when the weekend was over, but I was having too much with this one and chapter 9. So I'm giving it to you now. **

* * *

Casey groaned as he rolled over on a bed that was definitely not his and knocked face first into something that felt like a pair of hard knees. He winced as he banged his face a bit too hard against the offending limbs and warily opened his eyes and looked up at a pair of cautious brown eyes.

"This is going to be damn difficult." Walker said the second she caught his sleepy gaze. He blinked as he tried to figure out what the hell she meant as his brain tried to catch up with his ears. He froze as memories of a dark moonlit night on an Washington beach flooded his mind and caused him to feel a bit lightheaded. Holy shit did that actually happen? He glanced back up at her expectant gaze and noticed her slightly swollen lips and deduced that. And yes, yes it did and now he had to deal with the aftermath.

"This is the first thing you say to me in the morning, Sarah?" He asked tiredly. She scowled at him angrily.

"Well, you slept way too damn long after we dragged our asses back to our hotel and I've been sitting here trying to not let the hundred different scenarios of how we're going to screw this up take over my brain and cause me to explode." She grumbled before she promptly looked away from his wary gaze. Casey blinked as the fast rush of words replayed in his head and his face fell.

Oh.

"Do you regret it already, Sarah?" He asked quietly. She tensed beside him and gave him a cautious look.

"It's not about regret, Casey…" She said slowly. He leaned the side of his face down again on his pillow and continued to stare up at her and her messy blonde hair that was tied up in a loose pony tail, her tight white shirt along with the baggy grey sweat pants she was wearing. She looked sexy in anything at any time of day – or maybe that was just him. Something in her words nagged at him.

"Can you call me, John? Just when it's us?" He whispered suddenly. She blinked – what?

"I…" She said awkwardly trailing off. He gave her a funny look.

"Is it that weird to call me by my first name?" He asked slowly. She winced and rubbed her left hand up and down her right arm.

"It's been a long time I've been calling you, Casey." She said quietly. His eyes softened.

"I guess it makes the few times you call me by my real name special because you don't do it often…" He said quietly trying to convince himself it was okay that the girl he felt so strongly about still called him by his last name like they were strangers. He didn't really notice when they were in the field or anytime except when they were being rather intimate – that's when he noticed it wasn't quite normal. He watched carefully as Walker sighed and shook her head.

"No, it's more like I just did it to keep a distance, John." She said softly. He froze as she easily said his name. So it was a conscious decision on her part. Why didn't he see that? Walker never did anything without a reason.

"How about now?" He asked cautiously. She gave him a weak smile and slowly reached out and rested her hand against his cheek. It was one of the most intimate gestures she has ever shown him in his entire life. He felt his cheeks start to heat up against his will. She furrowed her brows until she realized what was happening.

"You're blushing, John." She said softly. He continued to stare at her without doing anything about the light pink that spread across his cheeks. It felt nice to be honest with his emotions for once.

"Yeah?" He whispered while sounding slightly breathless. He watched her tilt her head to the side as she simply watched him with curious eyes.

"Yeah." She whispered back as she stared at the reaction she didn't even try to provoke from him. It simply happened anyway – it was…nice.

"Are you still freaking out about how this is going to work?" He asked as the blush naturally faded from his face. Her eyes refocused and suddenly her expression was guarded again. Ah she was never going to change – he didn't mind that much.

"The General will be on in a few minutes." She said cautiously as she glanced at the clock on the table beside the bed they were sitting on that read 7 am. He waited until she looked back at him before he started talking. When she locked eyes with him he told her what she needed to hear.

"Sarah, we are both expert agents – we'll be fine. We just have to be the same people from before last night okay?" He said slowly. She laughed softly and shook her head. He was stunned – she actually laughed. Her real laugh. What was the world coming to?

"This started way before last night, John. This started way before we fully knew each other." She said carefully. He shot her a wary look.

"I refuse to be what we were before then." he said flatly. She raised an eyebrow.

"And what was that?" She asked carefully. He reached up and gently brushed a stray of blonde hair out of her face and curled it beside her ear. He felt a rush of joy that she was letting him do this – that she was letting them do any of this.

"Something like friends, but mostly still partners." He replied evenly. She gave him a quizzing look.

"And what are we now?" She asked quietly. He watched her for a few moments before answering.

"Still something like friends, but now something much more than partners." He whispered hopefully. She gave him a searching look and he didn't know what she was looking for - he had no more hidden thoughts to share with her after last night.

"It's going to be hard to hide, John." She said quietly. He suddenly shot her a determined look.

"Take it as a challenge, Walker. Treat it like a missi- shit actually no." He started to say, but then instantly stopped himself as they both winced.

"That is the whole point, John. This is not a mission. You are not my target." She said carefully staring at the white wall over his head. He stared at her suspiciously blank expression and tried to gauge what she must be thinking. Something along the lines of we're so screwed he was sure.

"Sarah?" He asked carefully. She finally tore her eyes away from the wall and glanced down at him.

"Yeah?" she asked slowly. He gave her a calm look.

"Take a deep breath and lie the hell down." He said simply as he grabbed her by the shoulders and swiftly tugging her down to fall on top of the pillow beside him. She went willingly of course – it wasn't like he could actually force her to do anything.

She gracefully hit the pillow across from him and they stared at each other finally at eye level. He ran his hand up and down her bare arm and felt the Goosebumps he left behind on her skin. She didn't stop him. He brushed the fallen hair out of her eyes and trailed his fingers down her face and stopped to rest it against her cheek - she still didn't stop him. He gently grasped her hips and tugged her closer until their bodies were pressed up against each other - she still didn't stop him. It was a crazy heady feeling not having her push him away anymore. He thinks he would pass out from the joy if he didn't control his breathing properly.

"Do you still want me, Walker?" He whispered searching her eyes for any more of those pesky doubts he spent a good portion of last night soaked and freezing on a beach dispelling from her brain. All he saw was caution and something he swore looked like contentment - she held on to the caution harder though.

"That's not the point, John..." She said warningly. He blinked - oh no. Here we go again.

"Before you start on another rant about how this is going to be hard, do understand that I already honestly know this is going to be fucking difficult, Sarah, but before we talk about all of that crap tell me you want me too. Actually no, no tell me you need me too." He said cupping her cheeks and waiting patiently. He watched her breathing rate spike as her eyes darkened while she tried to find her words. But he already gave her the words - she just needed to find the courage to say them. He spent a long time inferring her feelings. For just once he needed to hear them. Just one time.

"Just once, Walker. I don't need you to tell me every day or even often. Just once is enough." He whispered staring at her with pleading eyes. She open and closed her mouth for several moments with no sound coming out. She tried to get the damn words he wanted out of her mouth but it was really hard with him staring at her like that. So she decided to remove the obstacle making the situation even more nerve-wracking.

"Close your eyes." She muttered. He furrowed his brow in confusion, but did as she asked as she brushed her hand down his face to close his eyes. He felt her lean forward and held his breath as her own warm breath ghosted over his cheek.

"I need you, John." She whispered in his ear so quietly he had to strain himself to catch all of syllables. But when he registered the words he never thought she would say - never really let himself hope she would say he nearly passed out from the blinding rush of happiness. Maybe they weren't supposed to be happy, but he really didn't know what else to call the all-consuming joy that was filling his body. He felt honest joy - she was simply alarmed.

"John...you're hyperventilating." She said slowly. He laughed as he opened his eyes still trying to catch his run away breath but most likely he would never catch his breath around her.

"If I pass out do know it's your fault entirely." He said teasingly as the lightheadedness took over. He can't believe she said it - he still can't. Now she was just scowling at him and on the verge of smacking him over the head.

"John Casey, you bastard! You better not black out!" She shouted as she quickly sat up on the bed and dragged his limp body upright with her. She could see his eyes glaze over and gritted her teeth in annoyance - he was so fucking dramatic!

"Too late." He laughed before he felt the blood rush to his head and he passed out for a moment. She caught his unconscious body easily and stared at him in disbelief. Did he really just allow himself to do that? He was a fucking NSA agent!

"What the hell, Casey?" She growled as she roughly chunked his body back onto the pillow in utter disgust. He was such a child.

* * *

A few minutes later, two intelligence agents were lying on the bed waiting for the General- one looked extremely content while the other had a rather annoyed expression on her face.

"I can't believe you did that." She grumbled beside him as they kept waiting for the General. They were alone mostly, but they knew they put their jobs on the line when Casey was trying to save the assassin that was coming to bite them back in the ass and as well as loosing Javier Vargas who is going to probably do the same.

"It was fun." He said cheekily. She shot him a look of disbelief.

"How is passing out fun, Casey?" She growled at him. He was so freaking weird! He simply shrugged and flashed her a cheeky grin.

"Because it meant for once you got to catch me, Walker." He said calmly. She froze as she replayed his words in her head - he did not just say that.

"So damn cheesy." She muttered under her breath. His honest thoughts were way too damn cheesy. He snorted.

"I am the king of cheese - nice." He said with a chuckle. She glared at him.

"You should be the king of dramaville too." She grumbled. He gave her a measured look.

"Then you should be the queen of denialville." He shot back easily. She glowered at him.

"Shut up before I straggle you, Casey - trust me you will not wake up." She said threateningly. He simply raised an eyebrow and searched her eyes.

"You liked it." He said simply. She sputtered in disbelief.

"Are you stupid? I did not!" She shouted in disgust. He snickered at her explosive reaction.

"You probably held me and everything!" He teased. Walker clenched her jaw and was literally about to choke her partner to death before they even had a chance to figure out what the hell they were.

"Ugh! I hate you, Casey!" She shrieked before she crossed her arms and promptly turned away from him. She narrows her eyes as she glared at the ground and listened to his light laugh.

"Me too, Sarah." He said happily. She scowled at the floor and refused to acknowledge the fact that he knew her too way.

"Well, it seems as though you two are even closer." The screen on the TV turned on instantly as they quickly turned over on their sides and rose to their feet when they saw the General. "How was the Gala?" She steadily asked. Casey and Walker shared a wary glance. She was not going to like this.

"General, about that..." Walker slowly started to say with an edge in her tone. They were not ready to do this yet.

"There was another mission going on there while Walker and I where there," Casey stepped in seeing as though she struggled to get the words out. "A senator is a dead, an assassin names Anastasia who works for the HAND killed someone namd Lucas and Javier Vargas got away." He gave a pointed look towards Walker. She dryly looked at him.

General Beckmann had an infuriated expression flashing in her eye as she incredulously glared down the agents with a disapproving look. If she was pissed she was not showing it. She was a good actress. "Are you saying you let your target get away with the weapon?" She asked in disbelief. Casey slowly nodded his head, unsure of what to make anymore. "You two are compromised." She deadly proclaimed in a seething tone.

"We are not.." Walker tried to give a harsh response, but the General sharply raised her hand indicting for to stop assessing her commander the way she is now.

"I don't care what you're not, agent Walker. You two let a very powerful man get away and now that he know what you and Walker look like he'll be coming after you." She crossed her hands as she pinned her agents down with a simple, deadly glare.

"That's true..." Walker tried again to reason with her, but she continued talking and so Walker kept her mouth shut until the General was done.

"I will deal with the matter at hand, but for now you and agent Casey will remain in Washington until you have Vargas and the weapon." She said in a steady tone, carefully eyeing them down. "You will also be there for another three weeks to make sure your mess has completely vanished and once you return, you both will be getting an two month suspension and training junior agents." The General icily said as they both have her an incredulous look taking a step forward to make sure she wasn't sadistically joking. She wasn't.

"WHAT?" They exclaimed in disbelief with a harsh tone in their voice.

"Oh and one more thing, agents?" General Beckmann said before she went off the screen. They both paused in their step. Damn and they were almost out of the clear too.

"Yes?" Casey said blankly as they give her one long suffering look, but froze when they saw the dead serious expression on her face. She was always serious. Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit. General Beckmann narrowed her eyes and they both tensed as they stared back at their commander's calculative gaze with serious alarm. Oh fuck. How the fuck did she know?

"Don't get caught." She said warningly before she went off the screen this time. As if she couldn't read the change in the air around them. It was practically suffocating him how relaxed they both appeared after several hours of utter unbearable tension. They nearly revolved around each other. She knew this was coming for a long time. He knew there was nothing he could do short of breaking their partnership to stop it. He knew they were beyond compromised. They better not fuck this up anymore than it already is or she was going to get on their ass so fast their heads were going to spin.

"Sarah." Casey said tensely still staring at the black screen with careful eyes. She shook her head and turned her body toward the bathroom.

"Let it go, Casey." Walker said quietly walking passed him and into the bathroom. He finally tore his eyes away from the black screen and almost followed after his partner who meant everything to him.

That was way too damn close. They needed to be better. They needed to be flawless. No one else could know.

* * *

**A/N: This was never was going to get any easier. In reality their lives just got harder. The question they have to answer is that is it worth it? And how much are they willing to give up for each other? And where do they draw the lines in their uncharted relationship? Expect arguments – I love "Sassy" arguments (maybe even the make up scene.)**

**Anyway, OFF TO DO CHEMISTRY! (hahaha and afterwards I can do "Sassy" chemistry because you've waited 8 chapters to read this part of the story which really isn't much and I was gonna' do it way and I mean way later on in the story HAHA!)**

**Hope you like it. **

**Review and let me know what you think.**

******And I also want to point out that my friend read this fanfic off my phone and posted a few reviews on this story while I was still signed in. So I'm telling you guys DON'T get the wrong idea.**


	9. Chapter 9 Waiting

**A/N: lalala. Stressed agents. Fun. '**_**Forbidden'**_** romance – even more fun. Badass agents who are going to try to lie their ass off and pretend they are just partners to the world – EVEN MORE FUN. HA! While they fight on the side too. This is kinda' like a filler so . . . . . .  
**

* * *

Sixteen hours later, after arguing most of the day about their next place they should be in, they ended up in some shitty place while having to stay on the low key.

Fuck.

John easily kept pace with his briskly walking partner as she stalked into their new building away from the gala and towards the stairs that would lead them up to their newest apartment. Really this shitty flat had now become the one place they could actually lie low and the one place where they could be themselves without any distractions. It was a piece of shit on the shady side of town – but it was hideout for the moment. If you found a good apartment that wasn't about to fall through the floor in Washington you were a lucky bastard.

John warily glanced at his silent partner who hadn't said a word the entire ride home. She had a tense look on her face and he knew there were a million different thoughts flashing through her sharp mind as she dissected their situation and came up with likely progressively more disturbing conclusions as well. She was a brilliant agent and a brilliant spy in general. But sometimes he thinks she overanalyzed things – she was very detail oriented and up close and personal with all the problems in their lives.

However, personally he liked to take a step back and see the whole picture before he made any decisions. He was a sniper through and through – he didn't particularly like close up fighting. He preferred to have a lot of distance between him and most of his targets with just his guns– lately, though a lot of their missions have been starting to shift towards Sarah's fighting style and her field of specialties. He wondered how much of that was with the agency and how much of it might just be the world changing around them. He was a multiskilled agent and highly adaptable. He could fight hand to hand combat and wield shot guns as well as Walker could snipe – but he had preferences.

She was one of those preferences. They were under a lot of stress right now – but he was still happy she said yes. He was even more happy when she didn't back out because of the shit they were about to get hit with – at least not yet. She didn't flat out reject him after things started getting risky – it spoke volumes of how much she actually felt for him. He finally decided to break the silence that fell over them as they approached their floor.

"What are you thinking about, Walker?" He asked quietly as he shoved his hands in his pockets and gave her a calm look. She tensed, but he knew it was more from their situation than him getting on her nerves.

"How did she know, Casey? We didn't even do anything. How was it so obvious?" Walker asked carefully and she clenched her hands into fists. He gave her a wary look. Oh boy. She was trying to dissect Beckmann – that never worked well for anyone. He had known Beckmann for 5 years and the woman was still a mystery in some ways to him.

"That's that thing - it's not obvious, Sarah." He said slowly. She angrily clenched her jaw.

"And yet she still knew. She doesn't know me at all, Casey – there is nothing we did out of the ordinary." She said frustrated that someone had managed to see something she didn't want them to see. It bugged her. She was supposed to be one of the best liars in the world, damn it! John could feel the agitation rise in her and finally sighed.

"It's not you she was reading, Sarah – it was me." Casey said quietly. She tensed beside him but kept walking.

"What do you mean?" She asked carefully. He glanced away from her cautious gaze.

"She's known me for a long time. She's seen me at my absolute worst, Walker. She knows me like the back of her hand – it annoyed the shit out of me, but for a long time there was no one else who knew me that well. I only met her a few years ago, Walker. I told you I was alone before then. I was grateful to have a sort of friend like her. It's kind of hard to be friends with your boss though." He muttered offhandedly. He didn't really have a social life back then – he still doesn't. But if he had her he didn't really care.

"What are you trying to say, Casey?" She asked slowly. He took a deep breath and gave her a weak smile.

"It's not really hard to see that I'm happier right now then I have ever been in my entire stint at the agency, Walker. It really doesn't take a genius to see that you make me happy." He said calmly. He watched her visibly freeze in her step for almost half a millisecond before she continued down the hall like nothing happened. But he noticed the difference. She was more than a little taken aback by his words. He didn't think many people were ever as honest with her as he tended to be. He doubted she spent much time with honest people in general.

"Tone down the damn happy then, Casey." She grumbled. He snorted.

"Give me some time, Sarah - it's been less than 48 hours since you finally stopped being a stubborn Polish character. I'm still kind of in shock." He said warily. She stopped in front of their door and stared at it for a moment.

"We can't afford to be sloppy, Casey. We don't have the luxury." She said quietly before she used her key to open the door and walk inside. He followed her into the kitchen and watched her dump her pack of all their equipment onto the table.

"What do you want me to do, Walker?" He asked softly as he stood behind her. She threw their keys onto the table as well and slowly turned around to face him and his softened expression. He was different outside of the field. She gave him a searching look and decided that wasn't quite true. He was just different around her.

"I don't know yet. But right now I'm going to take a shower – I still feel like I'm covered in salt." She said scrunching up her nose in distaste. It was a disgusting feeling she couldn't stand. That and the fact that she smelled way too much like him. She can't smell like him before they head back after three weeks. It didn't matter whether she liked it or not. She ignored the stupid voice in the back of her head that asked her if she did. Stupid voices.

"Oh, can I join you?" He asked suggestively wagging his eyebrows at her. She shot him the dirtiest look she has ever shot a man in her life. He felt the sheer annoyance nearly slam into his face like wall and laughed as he shook his head. "I'm kidding, Sarah!" He exclaimed as she continued to glare daggers at him. She scoffed.

"Men." She grumbled before she spun around and stalked off to her room. He watched her go and furrowed his brow when he saw her sway her hips almost provocatively as she left. His mouth nearly hit the floor when she shot a mischievous smirk over her shoulder.

That was so not by accident.

"Oh that is just cruel, Walker!" He shouted after her. He heard her snicker as she disappeared into her room. He shook his head at his partner's spontaneous playfulness. Her hot and cold attitude really gave him whiplash sometimes. Now that she was gone he felt the post-mission exhaustion hit him like a bag of bricks. He decided he was tired enough that he seriously considered crashing on his bed and take a short nap before they had to figure out what the hell they were going to do for the next three weeks.

* * *

An hour later, Walker was sitting crossed legged on a chair at their kitchen table while typing on a small white laptop. Her hair was still damp from her shower and she had tied it up into a loose pony tail to keep it out of her eyes. She knew Casey was avoiding her right now because he didn't want to do the stupid boring report.

Lazy bastard.

She narrowed her eyes as she continued to type out her special version of how they lost Anastasia. Damn she wished she actually shot the little piece of shit. That girl was so stupid for getting tangled up in one immense mess. She was even more on edge about her because she knew who her trainer most likely was. She read something like this long ago and it now it was bothering the shit out of her-she wasn't going to tell Casey. Oh yeah, she wasn't going to bring Damon up for a while. She really didn't want to deal with the raging jealous questions Casey would have.

Mostly, because he really didn't want to hear her answers. Also because she didn't particularly want to give them. Or even think about them. She suddenly noticed she was almost slamming her fingers down on her keys and told herself to get a grip. She quickly drained the simmering anger out of her body to deal with later. She really hated Damon. She would probably really like to take one of his own knives and stab him a few times. Just a few. Maybe give him a concussion by slamming his head into a wall.

She wasn't smirking sadistically at all.

She suddenly heard suspicious shuffling somewhere behind her and paused without turning around. She didn't stop typing though. She was unarmed, but she didn't need a gun to disable an opponent - she could do enough damage with just her fists, but if it was someone from the outside she would've heard the squeak she made sure was clearly audible in all the windows and the door to their apartment. She never told Casey, but she kinda' of screwed up some of the entrances herself.

So maybe she was paranoid - so what? It was well founded.

"Boo." A deep voice still slightly rough with sleep whispered in her ear and suddenly she felt strong warm arms snake over her shoulders as rough lips brushed against the water softened skin of her cheek. She didn't visibly react at all simply because he was being stupid. Imagine what she would do to the idiot if she didn't know it was him.

"You know, you really shouldn't sneak up on me unless you want a broken jaw, Casey." She said calmly ignoring her partner who was dangerously invading her personal space at the moment. If he was anyone else he would be nursing a bloody face right about now. He still might end up with a bloody face if his hands ghosting over her collar bone dipped lower for even a second. She felt him snort softly against her cheek as he trailed soft kisses down her face and along her neck. She had to use every single last drop of her self-control to keep typing – it was only years of perfecting the art of removing her sharp mind from what her body was feeling at the moment that allowed her to actually think about what the hell she was writing. Who the fuck wouldn't find John Casey worshiping their skin with his mouth distracting?

She had mad skills apparently.

"You knew it was me, otherwise I would have a broken jaw, Walker." He mumbled against the base of her neck as he nuzzled her skin. Her right eye totally didn't twitch. Definitely not. She would shoot the first person who said it did.

"That's not the point." She said carefully keeping her voice crisp and unfazed. He didn't react or even stop what he was doing. It bugged her that he could keep going even when she seriously wasn't responding. Sometimes she wondered how he was attracted to her naturally cool attitude.

"I don't think you have a point." He said calmly before he brush his nose against the collar of her T-shirt and caused the loose fabric to fall off her shoulder and reveal even more skin. Well shit. He brushed his lips against her bare shoulder and she nearly froze in shock as she tried to comprehend what he just did. Holy shit he licked her. She started to feel her control start to waver and quickly steeled her resolve. She was not going to crack. Hundreds of men have tried to seriously seduce her throughout her whole life. Innocent affection should not feel like this damn it. No one ever made her feel like this. Then again she never particularly had any good feelings towards any of the disgusting men she's encountered in her life. He was a first for a lot of things. However she really needed him to stop – for her sanity. And possibly her dignity.

"Casey - let go." She said firmly as she still continued to type. It was miracle she was making any sense whatsoever. She highly doubted it was coming out right but he didn't need to know that. He obviously did the exact opposite of what she ordered – bastard held her even harder against his chest.

"Why?" He breathed against her ear. She narrowed her eyes.

"Because I'm working." She said steadily. Lies – she was writing crap now. She felt him laugh against her skin and tensed as the deep vibrations in his body traveled through her own. She never got used to feeling his laughter. It always did weird shit to her stomach.

"You can work later." He whispered sounding exactly like that naughty voice at the back of your head that told you it was okay to eat a lot of chocolate before dinner and that your mom wouldn't catch you.

Yeah that dinner never ends well. This wasn't going to end well either.

"You're a really terrible seducer." She said evenly without slowing her fast typing speed. That was the biggest lie she ever said in her life. Of course she was never going to tell him that. He paused in his apparently failing attempts to rouse a reaction out of his brilliant partner. His face fell slightly. She was good. She was really good. He almost felt slightly hurt that she could ignore his advances so well until he gently felt her pulse at her neck and was shocked when he felt it racing. He inhaled sharply. She was practically going to have a heart attack if her heart pumped any faster. It was amazing how she could keep everything she was feeling off her face when inside she was affected by him just as much as he was affected by her. She didn't say anything when she heard him sigh softly in relief. He was a child for needing that much reassurance. She let it go because they barely just got together less than 48 hours ago.

"I think you're lying, Sarah." He chuckled as he loosely tugged her shirt back over her shoulder as it was dangerously starting to reveal way too much. She scanned over the shit she wrote in the middle of her report and decided she would fix the crap section later and continued writing properly now that he had stop his distracting shenanigans for a moment – she wasn't going to let him start again.

"We have to watch out place for the next three weeks." She said steadily and effectively put an end his little games. Clint groaned and dropped his head onto her shoulder.

"Why are you bringing up this shitty mission between us, Sarah?" He complained. Her eyes steeled.

"Because if you don't want to smell like me all for the next three weeks and we get back to the agency and risk getting fired with whatever this is between us, you are going to let go of me right now and step away." She said evenly. He paused as he seriously considered her words. Damn it she was right. He reluctantly finally released his hold on her and pulled away. She ignored that fact that she felt the absence of his warm body as cool air to brush against her skin and caused her to feel slightly chilly. She was not a child. She didn't need that type of affection from him. She adamantly ignored the stupid voice at the back of her head that told her she was always lying to herself when it came to him.

"You think too much." He mumbled as he took a seat beside her and buried his head in his arms as he leaned against the table.

"I think enough so that we don't screw ourselves over." She said calmly. He snorted.

"I think I liked you better in denial." He muttered childishly. She finally stopped typing and stared at her blinking screen with an eerie calmness that made his skin crawl. He thinks he just royally pissed her off - the icy cold pissed though. He doesn't see that very often. Usually she is heatedly pissed. This was a bit more scary.

"Really?" She asked with absolutely no inflection in her voice. It was just dead flat. Almost threatening. He quickly shook his head.

"Don't lie about stuff like that then Casey. Understand that I don't do stuff like this. I don't take useless risks like this for no reason. I do not create damn liabilities just because it's fun, Casey." She said steadily. His face suddenly darkened.

"No, I'm not I'm lying. Don't even get me started how much I hated the fact that you were always pushing me away, Sarah. Never let yourself think that I wanted that." He said firmly. She shot him a sharp look. "I understand, Walker. I understand completely." He said being serious for a moment. She locked eyes with him and for once he ignore how they made him feel slightly breathless and focused on what she was actually feeling - she was worried in her own unique way. He knew that – it still bugged him a little that she was acting like he didn't know how many risks they were taking.

"Don't be careless then Casey. I still want this partnership - it's why I didn't let you just die on me and let myself fall because of it. It's what I wanted before all of this. I really don't want to work for the CIA. I really don't want to keep jumping places just because we can't keep our shit together and be professionals." She said through gritted teeth. He instantly tensed.

"I can be professional, Sarah." He said heatedly. She gave him a cold look.

"Sometimes I doubt that." She said carefully. He narrowed his eyes.

"Just because I like you doesn't mean you can push me around, Sarah." He said warningly. She glared at him.

"I don't push you around, Casey. I never treat you anything more or less than an equal. You really just piss me off sometimes when you can't talk to me seriously." She growled. He scoffed.

"Why should I have to be serious all the time, Walker? I'm serious when it matters – right now we're between missions and it's just you and me. We don't have to be on guard all the time." He said starting to feel like they weren't on the same page anymore. Especially when she suddenly banged her fist against the table and furiously shook her head.

"I'm not like you." She said heatedly. He leaned back away from the table and gave her a careful look.

"I never said you were like me. If I wanted someone like me believe me I would never have pushed for this. I like the fact that you are different, but you need to calm the fuck down and realize that if this is ever going to work, if we are ever going to work you need to be able to forget that there are risks every time we're together. Just ignore the fact that it's against regulation and enjoy it." He said quietly as he slowly shut her laptop screen in front of her and firmly dragged her chair towards him. She gave him a warning look as he brushed his hands along her arms, over her shoulder and up to cup her cheeks between his hands.

"Casey…" She said cautiously. He gave her a pointed look.

"It's John when we're alone, Walker." He whispered firmly. He felt her tense against his rough palms.

"John…" She started again but he shook his head.

"I'll take a shower later – I'll take one hundred showers before we leave tomorrow. But right now I'm going to kiss you and you are going to forget your own name." He said with a dark promise. He promptly tugged her face towards his and slammed his lips down on hers before she could voice any more of her annoying protestations. He felt her mumble something along the line of needy bastard and rolled his eyes before he reach down to brush his fingers under the edge of her shirt to shut her up. He felt her freeze in the kiss and used her momentary shock to push her back against her chair and coaxed her mouth open to deepen the kiss. She held onto the table beside them as he continued to kiss her like he wanted to mold them together until they were one with each other. He smiled slightly when he felt her finally give up trying to avoid him and actively kissed him back. It wasn't like she was trying too hard anymore.

She always felt a bit lightheaded when he kissed her – not just because he was a rather good kisser, (which made her suspicious about how he acquired that skill in the first place) but because he always kissed her with this baseline of unrestrained passion. She's always seen him as a highly disciplined and controlled type of person – at least under all the fake cheeriness and sarcasm he always liked to wear like a buffer between him and the rest of the world. He actually got really edgy when he felt like he was losing control of himself or the situation around him. Missions were usually fast and in the moment no one has a lot of time to think about anything except your next move. But during those agonizing moments when there was nothing you could do except watch as your control slips away from you – those are the moments when she feels like he is very close to actually losing his mind. Which is why she is surprised when he actually let's that piece of him rest when it's just them. He had a few control issues – she knew she had a lot more though. She just could never relax the way he could.

She felt him slowly run his warm hands down her arms and up her sides just because he wanted to feel her. He even gently dragged his hands down past her waist and ghosted over her crossed legged thighs that were currently resting against his knees, but he did nothing else except the soft almost hesitant touching and she sighed softly in pleasure because it felt really nice for once not too have to worry about whether the man she was kissing was going to be an asshole and try to take things farther then she was willing to go. Not that she was prude – far from it.

She was taught from a sort of young age that sex was a weapon. She used it as a weapon too. She was used and thrown away more times than she can count and she was tired of all the meaningless encounters she's had over the years. She was tired of assignments where she was objectified beyond reason. She was tired of only being valued by what she looked like. Sometimes she thinks her natural complexion was what doomed her. Sometimes she thinks the reason she got pulled into the illegal black ops portion of Polish Intelligence was because she was considered attractive.

But after years and years of seeing so many women and men who the world considered attractive, turn out to have no sense of decency and utterly lack humanity she always approached them with serious caution. Not every beautiful person out there was a stuck up bastard – but a good number of them were. That being said not all average looking people had amazing personalities to balance out their apparent 'social disadvantage'. Some people were just all around unpleasant people. She's been conditioned by life to be wary of people in general. She just didn't like people. She liked being alone. She got used to being alone. For her own safety she had to be alone. But then he literally fell into her life and slowly changed that. She still thought humankind in general was going down the drain, but he taught her that there were exceptions. She's met other people besides her partner she can actually stand.

He suddenly leaned into her a bit too much and when she abruptly let go of the table to reach up and bury her hands in his hair that she didn't realized she was the only thing keeping both their weights balanced. Before he could stop them they promptly toppled the chair she was sitting on and crashed to the floor roughly breaking the kiss on impact. The chair slid away from them as they slammed into each other as Sarah hit the floor and he fell on top of her with a loud oomph!

"Fuck! John, get off me. That freaking hurts!" Walker growled as she roughly shoved him away from her and gasped in deep breaths of air. He rolled off of her and groaned as he held his stomach in pain.

"You and me both Walker – you completely kneed me in the gut." He wheezed trying to blink the water out of his eyes. She pushed herself into a sitting position and irritably rubbed the back of her head – she had hit the tile floor hard. She shot him a dirty look as he took a few calming breaths and sat up as well.

"Make sure you're not trying to defy gravity the next time you want to be smooth and kiss me to win an argument, John." She muttered as she pushed herself off the floor and stood up. She glanced around at the mess of papers that flew everywhere in their fall and sighed. She turned around and held out her hand to her scowling partner still sitting on the floor rubbing his shoulder.

"You're the one who let go of the damn table." He grumbled as he took her hand and let her easily drag him to his feet. She raised an eyebrow as they came to eye level a bit closer than normally people would get during a conversation.

"Why should I be the one who has to support both our weight? I thought that was supposed to be your job?" She asked dryly. He grumbled something about never trusting her to keep them safe during kissing ever again and she snorted. He suddenly rested his arms loosely over her shoulders and flashed her a devious grin.

"Did I make you forget your name at least before our fall of doom?" He asked cheekily. She rolled her eyes.

"No." She said frankly. He pouted.

"Not even make it fuzzy?" He tried to grasp for straws. She gave him a dry look.

"Go take that shower John – it's one a.m and we have hell to walk through tomorrow." She said slipping out of his arms and turning to walk towards her room. She felt strong arms snake around her waist and drag her back against a firm toned chest. She inhaled sharply when she felt his hands ghost over her stomach and lightly brush the edge of her shirt like earlier. He buried his face her neck and she sighed in clear exhaustion as she felt him breath steady puffed of air against her cool skin.

"We're going to make it work, Sarah." He whispered determinedly. Her eyes dulled slightly as she quietly stared at the wall across the room with John Casey wrapped around her body. She never thought they would get this far – she didn't even know how long it was going to last. She was silent for a few moments before she finally took a steady breath.

"That's what you want John – it's not always what happens." She whispered. She felt him firmly shake his head and hold her tighter against his firm body.

"It doesn't matter what we do on our own time. We're going to watch our damn asses tomorrow as the most professional badass team and no one is going to question our partnership or its efficiency. I'll shoot a bullet through their eye if anyone even breathes the word compromised." He growled in a deep voice with promise in her ear. She smiled softly at the bite in his tone.

"Compromised, eh?" She said quietly. She felt him groan into her shoulder as he leaned against her back.

"I hate the word compromised. It's not even true – we can still be good partners on missions and whatever the hell we want to be between missions. We can still be Cole and Kate Carter – but why can't we be John and Sarah too?" He whispered with honest hope in his voice. She sighed.

"Maybe we can. I don't know, John. We can try." She said tiredly. She really didn't want to get her hopes up when everything could come crashing down so easily. That was one of the reasons she ignored him for so long. He was silent for several moments and she got lost in her worrying predictions.

"I can feel you thinking too hard, again." He whispered quietly.

"I never stop thinking." She said with a sigh. He paused before he finally spun her around in his arm and firmly searched her eyes for any serious regrets – he was happy when he found none.

"You should try it – it's fun not to think about anything once in a while." He said with a small smile. She gave him a cautious look.

"If we make it through the next three weeks, John I'll think about it." She said carefully. He brushed a strand of red hair that had escaped her pony tail out of her face and curled behind her ear.

"Good. Because I know we're going to make it through those few weeks." He said firmly. Now she just looked wary.

"Why – because you believe in luck?" She asked slowly. He lightly shook his head.

"No – because I believe in us." He said firmly. She felt her blood pressure spike – holy shit he was going to kill her with his unexpected words one day.

Cheesy bastard.

* * *

**A/N: I think she actually **_**likes**_** his cheese. I like his cheese – some of it makes me laugh. Hahaha. Now how evil am I? Well, actually I was pretty nice in this chapter. But once these 3 weeks are over how on earth are they going to fool Chuck of all people?**

**Interesting. Very interesting.**

**Oh and do you guys **_**like**_** Casey and Walker together,**_**together**_**? Or at least my version of '**_**together'**_**. I won't change their personalities – I refuse to - but some of those barriers are gone – not all of them though. Do you like that she is not technically pushing him away – even though she still kind of does anyway due to her personality, but, hey he actually gest to **_**try**_** and seduce her – most men would already be dead at that point. He is allowed to repeatedly try and fail. HA! And it's also really fun to see that he's not a pushover and that he can beat down her iciness fairly well. I don't think Sarah would like a pushover anyway. hehe :)**


	10. Chapter 10 Pasts

**A/N: Wanna' learn some interesting things about their separate pasts? (changes those a lot) Also I never said it was getting any easier.**

* * *

Sarah had been awake most of the night as she stared up at the dark ceiling trying to get her busy mind to shut down for just a few hours. It was harder to do than she would like. Sometimes she never got more than a few hours of sleep a week, depending on what kind of mission Beckmann sent them on and she knew that it was going to catch up with her the day they would finish this shitty mission. A lot of things would go wrong if her mind stopped working the way it's supposed to. She's seen it happen to other agents when they first get put in the field. It wasn't pretty. It was downright agonizing to watch them relapse into every painful experience that was previously dulled. Most agents threw themselves into something else because they didn't want to deal with the plaguing thoughts. The agents that managed to live through it were never the same afterwards. The good thing was that she shut everything off from the world to complete her assignments, but that didn't mean there weren't things creeping in her mind out there that could break her apart. One of the main reasons she hated agencies – she didn't and wouldn't know how many times they would bounce to agency to agency. They never told them. She didn't want to find out the reason why.

She didn't know when exactly she finally managed to fall into an uneasy state of unconsciousness, but she thinks it was around the time she started contemplating the exact shade of deep blue her partner's eyes were, that was when she knew she was beyond mentally exhausted. Sarah Walker didn't daydream about that.

That was just unheard of.

Then again she never expected to one day return a man's affections either and look where she was today. If only their full body agency discovered what they are now, they would have their guns and bashes ripped away from them. Their best team not only switched things around from time to time and became something more with each other, she let him talk her into something she swore she would never let happen. She was breaking her own personal laws right now and she didn't know how she felt about that at the moment. However she knew she had finally reached the point of utter exhaustion when she really couldn't think any more.

The next thing she consciously knew there was a hand lightly making contact with her shoulder. She acted on sheer impulse as she burst into a whirlwind of action. She firmly gripped the knife she always kept on some night stand and sharply spun around to roughly knock her assailant onto their back and dropped down on top of them to roughly pin their body to the bed. As she effectively immobilized her opponent, she managed to get her knife dangerously close to their throat – second away from ending their life.

She gritted her teeth as she glared threateningly down at calm blue eyes that haunted her nightmares when she did actually managed to dream, they were always nightmares though. She let her threatening grip on her knife loosen when she finally recognized the man she had viciously pinned beneath her iron hold. No wonder she had felt absolutely no resistance through the entire scuffle. it had been him. Things would have been a lot more awkward if she wasn't still technically half asleep. She could probably disable practically any opponent even in this stature, but that didn't mean she wouldn't go right back to sleep after they were dead.

"Fuck, Casey, why do you keep doing that?" She grumbled as she carelessly threw her knife onto the end of her bed and rolled off of him to collapse back onto her pillow. She really didn't want to deal with him and his crazy morning chatter before she had to, but she knew he would never leave her in peace now that she was awake. She didn't hear him move from the place she had pinned him to on her bed and furrowed her brows when she heard him inhale slowly.

"To see you do that." He whispered unexpectedly. She paused as she lay face down on her pillow. She didn't actually expect an answer to her rhetorical question.

He always chose to answer them though.

"Do what?" She mumbled half heartedly into the cushion that was suffocating her face.

"Drop whatever weapon you have when you realize it's me and let your guard down slightly." He said still in a whisper. She finally lifted her head off the pillow and shot him a quizzing look.

"Are you being weird again, Casey?" She asked cautiously. He shot her a small smile.

What the hell happened to John?

"Depends on your definition of weird, Sarah." He said softly. She stared at the odd expression on his face for a few minutes before she muttered her reply.

"I don't even know what to consider weird anymore. You're just bizarre sometimes." She muttered. He gave her a wary look.

"I think I liked weird better." He said dryly. She scoffed.

"Weird doesn't cut it anymore – who the hell knowingly tries to startle a trained agent in their sleep? Didn't you learn from the first time I nearly stabbed you in the stomach before we even knew what we were doing?" She asked in honest disbelief. He laughed as he shook his head.

"Yes, but I still manage to stop you before you actually do any real harm then. I'm not a novice agent myself. It would be rather difficult to be partners if you could accidentally kill me that easily, Sarah." He said dryly. He felt the mood suddenly shift as he watched her tear her eyes away from him and stare holes into her bed. That had him slightly concerned.

"Casey…" She asked hesitantly. He paused as he watched a shadow cross her face and tensed slightly.

"What is it, Sarah?" He asked carefully. He didn't think he would like what she was about to say. He saw her take a steady breath.

"John…am I like your adrenal rush or something? Is that why you want to be with me? Is that why I'm the only partner you ever had?" She asked sounding hollow and feeling empty as well.

Dead silence.

What the hell?

When he didn't respond after a few minutes, she looked up to see what he was doing and found him staring at her, looking utterly stunned. He didn't say a word as he simply stared at the honest accusations in her wary eyes and felt everything promptly freeze up and shut down inside of him.

She didn't just say that.

"Are you stupid?" He finally asked blankly. She gritted her teeth.

"I'm far from unintelligent, Casey." She said cautiously. He shook his head slowly while still keeping eye contact with her.

"No, no, I think you are because what just came out of your mouth really sounds like utter stupidity, Walker." He said still starting at her with a blank expression. He can't believe she said that. He really, honestly can't believe she had enough doubt in her to say that.

"So you don't just get off on being around someone who is just as dangerous to your well being as your missions?" She asked quietly. He froze.

well shit.

That made him finally snap out of his momentary daze.

"No, Sarah! No, of course not! That's just a small part of it. Did you actually think…shit! God damn it! Are you crazy? Did I really give you that much of a miscommunicated signal?" He asked still in shock as he tried to understand how on earth she came to that messed up conclusion. She shifted away from him as she sat up on the bed and wrapped her arms around her knees.

"You react weirdly to stupid things, Casey – sometimes it's really hard to believe…it's hard to feel like…" She trailed off not being able to finish her sentence, but unfortunately he knew exactly what she was trying to say now.

"- That I actually want you and don't have some other ulterior motive for doing this, right?" He finished for her flatly. She nearly winced from the emotionless way he spat out his sentence. How was she not supposed to consider that? She was trained to figure out what motives drive all the people around her – she has still yet to find what really drove his own actions and it was slightly driving her insane. He watched the internal conflict rage in her eyes and sighed before he sat up as well and kneeled beside her tense form. He reached out to gently place his hand against her cheek echoing the same gesture she showed him yesterday. God, was it just yesterday this all started? He felt like they've already been through a lifetime together.

"Walker – Sarah, if I had some crazy motive for wanting this other than anything genuine, couldn't you have figured it out by now? I never said you didn't have a brilliant mind. If I wanted you just because you were pretty, or dangerous, or something unattainable, wouldn't you be able to tell? Who can lie every second of every day, Walker?" He whispered utterly crestfallen that she could find it this hard to believe his feelings were real. He felt her shake slightly under his palm and he knew she was trying to find the answers to his questions, but the way her brain was wired wouldn't let her see the simple truth.

"I don't know." She whispered finally. His eyes softened as he watched the hesitation swirl in her eyes. Walker was one of those people who couldn't accept an obvious answer, but simple was all he had to offer.

"You know why it doesn't matter how good you are in the field when it comes to stuff like this?" Hd asked gently rubbing his thumb against her cheek. She furrowed her brow in confusion and he answered his own question.

"You're still an idiot for thinking you can ever understand us from a mission viewpoint." He whispered honestly. She viciously scowled at him.

Well, what was she supposed to think after all the times he reacted weirdly to her threats or her anger or pretty much anything negative she throws at him? It wasn't normal, but then again it was way too damn early in the morning for this. The alarm hadn't even gone off yet. She was tired damn it, and he came barging in here waking her up at - she glanced at her blinking alarm clock sitting on her side table and instantly froze. It was 1 hour before the sun was supposed to rise. As in she only had one hour to figure out what the hell they were going to do to cover up their semi-failed mission and the shit going on between them. She thinks she is going to stab something – or someone.

"HOLY SHIT, CASEY!" She shouted as she whipped around to take a better look at the clock and nearly caused them both to fall off the bed in her hast.

"What? What's wrong?" He asked, bewildered by her sudden shock and dropped his hand from her face.

"Why didn't the alarm go off an hour and a half ago?" She cried slamming her hand down on her stupid alarm and picking it up to see what the hell was wrong with it. And then she froze as she stared at the location of the little switch on the back of the clock. It was on the off side. She made sure to turn it on before she crashed last night. Her expression darkened as she heard him intake an uneasy breath.

"I sort of turned that off…" He said nervously. She continued to stare at her alarm clock with a blank look on her face.

"Why the hell would you do that?" She asked in an icy cold tone. He winced as he felt her rapidly stiffen as several walls went up. Damn it she was going to shut him out again. He gave her a firm look even as he watched her eyes flash dangerously.

"Because you haven't really slept since we got here, Walker…" He said slowly, taking her seething anger in stride. He's been keeping an eye on her, like her insomnia was getting worse. She suddenly slammed her clock down on the table and shot him a sharp look.

"That doesn't matter! That's my problem, Casey! I don't need you to baby me!" She growled. He narrowed his eyes at her unnecessary outburst.

"I don't baby you, Walker – I'm watching out for you. You're going to kill yourself if you don't take better care of your health." He said heatedly. She viciously shook her head and clenched her hands into fists.

"That is still my own personal problem, damn it!" She shouted furiously. He gave her a careful look.

"No it's not, Sarah." He said, starting to get more than a little pissed at her overreaction. She looked like she truly wanted to strangle him.

"Yes it is." She hissed. He felt the annoyance start to creep up on him.

"No, it's not. It's my job to make sure you're taking care of yourself because we're partners, Sarah and we're-" He started to say, but she panicked and shot forward to slam her hand against his mouth to muffle his words. He gave her a questioning look as she started to breathe faster and shook her head again.

"No! Don't say it like that. Damn it, Casey, don't treat me differently just because…just because." She cut herself off because she couldn't even say it herself. If she put labels on whatever this was it was going to be too real and she didn't think she could handle something like that. She growled in frustration and angrily looked away when she saw disappointment settle into his eyes. She was pushing him away again. She was trying to keep them somewhere between real and not real. He slowly reached up and pulled her hand away his mouth.

"How can I do that, Sarah? How can I not treat you differently? How can you ask me to treat you like just any other agent when you're not, Sarah? You're not going to be like everyone else. Do you even know what it meant to me when you said you would try whatever this was between us? Didn't you realize what you were agreeing to when you kissed me back, Sarah?" He asked in a slightly strained voice. He watched her clench her jaw as she tried to gather her chaotic thoughts to answer him.

"I know that, Casey. I know all of that. I know what you wanted and I told you over and over again that I might not be able to give it to you!" She said angrily rubbing her hands over her face.

He just never listens.

He sighed as he watched her slam her eyes shut and stop looking at him. He felt the annoyance drain away because he knew she wasn't actively trying to hurt him – that didn't mean it didn't hurt anyway, though. He ignored his own wounded feelings for a moment and leaned forward to carefully wrap his arms around his rigid partner. He pulled her close until he had her pressed up against his chest and leaned his cheek against the top of her head. The only piece of hope he was hanging onto right now was the fact that she let him hold her and didn't pull away.

"You've only been in a relationship once, right?" He finally asked quietly. He felt her tense in his arms as she inhaled sharply.

"Yeah. Yeah, I have, Casey, but you know how that ended and after that I knew there were no such as relationships where we come from. There is no such thing as people spending time together just for fun. Sure people slept together, but that was just stress and release. People just use each other, Casey. Nobody sticks around after they get what they want. Nobody looks out for you when things go to shit. Nobody puts your life before their own. People were cruel, backstabbing and heartless. Affection, love and caring were just empty lies. People…people were just not like you, John. You make it really hard for me to think you're real. It's hard to think any of this is real. Because there definitely wasn't any of whatever this is." She said tiredly gesturing to the currently non-existent space between them. He tightened his grip around her waist as he silently listened to her talk about her past and started to feel angrier and angrier at the cold people who ripped her belief in humanity away from her and left her alone in a world surrounded by no warmth whatsoever. It was a miracle she even felt anything for him at all

But he internally smiled when she called him by his first name.

"The world is different on both sides." He whispered in her ear. She leaned her forehead against his shoulder and hid her eyes against his shirt.

"You have no idea what it's like to wake up one day and think and realize everything you knew was a lie and then spend the next several months trying to decide what is real and what is not. It's like my entire world was shattered and now I have to try and rebuild it with the fear that I might never get it right. I don't want to ever be blinded by lies like that again or others. I don't ever want to lose touch with reality again." She said fervently as she tightly gripped the edge of his shirt and continued to breathe deeply. John stared at the wall behind her as he felt her words chip away at his heart and with every painful breath she took, he felt like the air was being knocked out of his own lungs.

"I do have an idea of how you feel, Sarah. I may not have had your con life, but mine sure as hell wasn't pleasant and perfect. Do you want to know what shit I did? It's not all in my general files, you know? I know you've read them. Maybe, my past military records are there, but do you know what my shit life was like before I turned 17 and enlisted in the army? Do you know what type of hell I lived in before I traded one nightmare for another?" He asked quietly. He felt her tense in his arms and shake her head.

"No. You don't have to tell me, John." She said carefully trying to pull away from him, but he held her tighter against his body to stop her from leaving. She had to know eventually.

"No, I'm going to tell you whether you want to know or not. I grew up in a damn shitty house with an abusive, drunken father. I never went to school until the government tried to force me into high school – and even then I got kicked out on day 3 for misbehaviour. The one good thing that ever happened to me was that I got to learn how to fire a damn gun. But even that landed me into loads of trouble. Being the best at something catches the eyes of the wrong people – I know you know that. It also causes the people who are supposed to look out for you to feel resentful and abandon you." He said quietly as he crushed her body to his and buried his face in her soft hair that smelled faintly like the standard floral shampoo she used. She was silent as she absorbed his words. He decided to continue.

"It's lonely at the top, Walker. Nobody wants to be around the best. I used to have a brother – a really shitty asshole of a brother – but you already know the ending to that story don't you? I know you were too smart not to figure it out when I mentioned him before the start of this mission." He said closing his eyes and listening to her steady breath. Her only response was to grip his shirt tighter. She did know – it wasn't hard to guess what happened.

"I tried everything to get him to like me, Walker. I tried everything to make him happy, to get him to say he was proud of me, to tell me he cared for me, but nothing worked, Walker. Nothing was ever enough. All I saw when I looked into his eyes was utter undeniable hatred. Who hates their little brother, Sarah?" He asked sadly feeling his arms around her start to tremble and she slowly pulled back to give him an uneasy look.

"I don't know - I've never had a sibling, John." She said reluctantly. He smiled weakly at her hesitancy and gently pressed his lips to her cheek relieving her of the need to relate to him as the fact that she said his name again. She just had to listen. One of the many things he liked about Sarah was that no matter how much she didn't understand or got annoyed at his never-ending chatter – she was always listening. After years of being ignored to finally find someone who could just sit silently and listen to him was like an invaluable gift.

"It's okay. All I wanted was for us to be brothers – real brothers. The kind that always looked out for each other. But then he got older and he wasn't a child anymore. He started drinking and gambling and getting into trouble with gangs and had fights every other night. I was bailing him out of jail more times than I could keep track of. He was violent when he was completely wasted. I wasn't weak - I could handle anything he threw at me. But then one day he had me shoved up against a wall in a bar I had tracked him down in. It was hard to breathe with his arm crushing my airway. I was starting to see black spots and losing consciousness fast. There was a half empty bottle of whiskey beside me and I didn't know what I was doing and-" He whispered shakily as he started to see half blurry memories flash across his eyes. He lost sight of his partner for a moment and got dragged into his past from 10 years ago. She immediately noticed the familiar glazed look he was wearing.

"Stop. Stop, John, you don't have to tell me." She said quietly reaching up to cover his mouth before he started saying something that might trigger another break down. He laughed darkly against her hand and it sent icy shivers down her spine. He felt the sharp hurt he was ignoring for the past 20 minutes suddenly flood his body.

"Why not, Walker? Don't you want to know that my past was just as bad as yours? Don't you want to know that you're not the only screwed up person in the world? Don't you want to know how broken I am? That I'm not perfect? That I doomed myself from the moment I lost the only family I had in the entire world? I'm an agent, Saran – but don't you want to know that I'm one of the most screwed up killers in the world? That the first person I ever killed - was my own brother?" He asked damningly. His disturbing admission was immediately followed by deafening silence. Walker couldn't even hold back the flinch even if she wanted to. He wasn't usually this cold and merciless with his words – but the way she had completely tried to reason away his genuine feelings really stabbed him in the chest.

There aren't many harsh things she can say that really got to him – but that did.

"Isn't that what you wanted, Walker?" He asked shaking her slightly in front of him. She let him shake her until she was slightly dizzy, but she found it in her to shake her head and refute his accusations.

"No. No I never wanted that. I didn't want you to have a past as horrible as mine, or even more than that." She whispered in a lost voice. He hid his eyes behind his bangs and took a shaky breath as he held her by the forearms several inches away from him.

"You say you don't know how to do this Sarah – but I don't know either. I never had a stable relationship in my life. I was too busy trying to stay alive before I was 17. I was in hell on earth while in the military. It was like one brutal battle after another. Berlin was the last straw before I had to quit. By the time I got out I was so lost and depressed I did horrifying things – things I can't even remember anymore. There are blanks in my memory, Sarab and I'm terrified to find out what happened during those hours. I worked for heartless people I should have shot instead of carrying out their orders. I was wasted more hours in the day than I was sober. One day I realized I was turning into my brother – that was that first time I tried to end my pathetic life." He said staring at her with deeply haunted eyes and saw her own personal demons reflect in her steady gaze.

They both know he didn't succeed – otherwise he wouldn't be here.

"By the time Beckmann found me, I was at the lowest point of my entire life. I was a sitting on the wrong side of a high suspension bridge above one of the busiest highways in New York, drunk out of my mind and feeling numb enough not to care about anything anymore. I was planning to jump – because I was too chicken to shoot myself, or to drown myself, or to even throw myself in front of a damn train. At least I couldn't back out of a fall once it started. And then she climbed over the edge of the railing and took a seat beside me. And you know what the bastard said to me?" He asked with a humorlessly laugh as he leaned his forehead against her shoulder and shook slightly.

She simply sat there and stared at her shaking partner with an uncertain look. She didn't know what to do. She never had to comfort someone else in her entire life. So she just did what he did when he tried and mostly failed to comfort her. She slowly reached up and wrapped her thin arms around his neck. For once she was the one hugging him. She felt him freeze in her arms and just drew him closer.

"What did she say?" She asked quietly in his ear. He took a shaky breath as he wrapped his own arms around her waist and pressed his face into her neck.

"She said if I jumped I'd kill her too – and then he promptly handcuffed us together and shot me her signature I-have-you-in-the-palm-of-my-hand-look. The bastard was insane!" He exclaimed as he half sobbed, half laughed against her skin. Walker held his shaking form tighter and promised herself she would be a bit nicer to Beckmann from now on.

Just a tiny bit.

"What did you do?" She probed gently. She felt him grumble something unintelligible against her collarbone. She sighed and waited for him to repeat himself. He finally took a deep breath to try again.

"I didn't do anything. I got my ass dragged across the city because she said she forgot the keys to the handcuffs in her car. Then she dragged me through an expensive looking condo and into an apartment that barely looked like it was lived in. The second she shut the door behind her, she jiggled the cuffs and they fell right off. I was about to strangle her for bringing me there, but she pointed a gun at my forehead and told me to take a shower and brush my teeth because I smelled like shit and looked like I got run over by a herd of elephants. She handed me a razor and a tooth brush and shoved me into an overly bright washroom before she slammed the door in my face and locked me in from the outside." He muttered with the annoyance clearly apparent in his voice. The bastard had played her better than anyone ever did in his entire life. Maybe not as well as Sarah – but this was all before Walker. He felt her shift down to sit on the back of her legs so that she was no longer balancing her weight on her knees, but she didn't let him go so she ended up practically sitting in his lap. They didn't let it get awkward – they were beyond awkward at this point.

"You must have been a sight to see." She said warily. He snorted.

"I looked like a caveman." He said frankly. She chuckled quietly – she can imagine Beckmann's uncontrollable need for cleanliness and order. What she didn't expect was her saving a person so far gone down the road of the wretched as Casey had been. She had new respect for their handler. She respected her a bit more every day.

"What did he make you do after he forced you to clean up your act?" she asked quietly after a few moments of silence. Clint grumbled something about annoying super-agents but told her anyway.

"She forced me to change into a set of clothes that fit me perfectly – which had me on high alert because that meant he had planned all of this. I thought she was just an eccentric police officer trying to make me presentable before she took me in. But then she confused the shit out of my head when she handed me a cup of hot coffee, a handful of aspirin and asked me what did I want to do with my life? Like she was my fucking shrink or something!" John scoffed – he still couldn't believe the balls Beckmann had to calmly converse with a highly dangerous suicidal agents. It made him wonder what type of people Beckmann act sully worked with in her old life before the agency to be that unaffected by his condition. He heard Walker chuckle beside his ear and it tickled his skin and made him feel warm and content and all the things she said she couldn't make him feel. He realized she was doing all the things she said she couldn't do. She just didn't think she could do them.

"You royally cussed her out, I assume?" She said dryly. He snorted and held her tighter against him. He was never going to let her go. No matter what she ever said anymore. Even if the things she said hurt like hell sometimes.

"You bet. It was a motherfucking explosion of the century. I cursed everyone from her great grad uncle to her future nieces and nephews. I told her exactly how I was going to kill her with her own stupid annoying black blazer. I told her how I would take her own gun and shoot myself afterwards too." He said gruffly even though she knew he really wasn't angry anymore, especially considering the way he was running his hands up and down her back. He gently leaned his forehead hers and as she watched the emotions swirling in his eyes she knew this was the moment that changed his life.

"But then she asked me if I could start over again would I be a different? She asked me if I wanted to change and become a better version of myself." He said quietly, suddenly lost in his memories of when he literally got dragged out of his own personal hell by a complete stranger. Walker suddenly reached up and brushed the hair out of his slightly glazed eyes.

"What did you say?" She asked softly. His eyes refocused on her calm blue ones and he suddenly felt calm too. He felt peaceful. Walker was more than a ruthless agent that didn't know how to be nice. He didn't need nice – he needed grounding. He needed someone to be his rock in the storms that passed through in his life.

"I said yes." He whispered.

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**A/N: INTENSE! Just because they are something like together doesn't mean they're not still intense agents. So we never got to hear about Casey's background story (in my world which I hope you guys did like his background that I chamfer very much and I do you're not that mad) and that was the gist of it. Walker hinted at her own, but she is still Walker reserved than he is. I think Casey had a fairly interesting if tragic short life. It was rather a lot to go through his younger years. And holy shit Beckmann is amazing. She was not even in this chapter and her badass brilliance shines.**

**P.S: Sorry there wasn't any action in this chapter, but this one is very important. But hopefully there'll be some action in the next one if you guys are still reading it.**


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